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UNITED STATES OF AMEEICA. 



EUROPEAN LEAFLETS, 



FOB 



YOUNG LADIES. 



BY EVANGELINE, 



FIRST SERIES, 



NEW-YORK: 

JOHN F. BALDWIN, PRINTER, 114 FULTON ST. 

18 61. V 



jfif j!^:^<^. 







Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1861, ty 

A. E. NEWMAN, 

in the Clerk-s Office of the District Court of the United States for the Souther-.i 
District of New Yorli. 



I / 2. I 



Iff r" 



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PREFACE 



The Key. Mr. Newman, whose recent letters from 
abroad have been so generally read and commended in our 
religious newspapers, was accompained on the tour hy 
his excellent lady. He had long wished to visit Europe^ 
and especially the lands of the Prophets, Apostles, and the- 
World's Redeemer — a journey, not desired from recreation 
or mere curiosity, but to improve his mind for greater use- 
fulness in his sacred duties and calling. This cherished 
wish he was able to gratify from the Christian affection 
and hberahty of the Bedford Street Methodist Episcopal 
Church — a sacred and hallowed spot — where his ministerial 
labors had been so much blessed. So, too, the fees frOm the 
''Hard Knot^'' (marriage) which often had been tied by 
him, and is referred to in the first chapter, enabled Mrs. 

N— , the authoress, to be the fellow-traveler of his 

voyages and journeys. 

Few teachings are more pleasing, or profitable, than 
those of travel; and readers are not likely to be interested 
in anv scenes which have not been strongly impressed upoii 



IV PRE FAC E . 

the writer's own mind. The brief descriptions here given 
arise from a lasting remembrance of them, and we doubt 
not will be a source of pleasure and profit to those who 
peruse them. It is the studied wish of the authoress to 
act as a pleasant guide through those regions she passed 
over, and so striking and rich in beautiful scenery, and im- 
pressive histories. Her friends have urged the publication 
of this volume, to be followed bj two others — "Leaflets," 
from France, Germany, and Switzerland — and "Leaflets" 
of Italy, glorious, classic Italy ! It is high time that 
fashionable story books, with bad magazine reading, now 
so universal, should be laid aside for the more valuable 
study of travels and history. The best way to accomplish 
this noble object, is to increase the taste for elegant, truth- 
ful literature, made attractive by the hand of genius and 
piety. 

The authoress will not venture to offer any apology for 
the imperfections of the "Leaflets," her first work. Such 
as it is, she commends the volume^^to the improvement of 
her readers, and the blessings of heaven. May some good 
accompany these pages, which the angels shall gather for 
the garner of the skies! 

G. P. D. 
The Clove^ Staten Island, 

Christmas, 1861. 



CONTENTS. 



PA(iE 

CHAPTER I.— Embarkatiox, - ... - 7 

" II. — Ocean YoYA&E, 12 

" III.— Isle of Wight, .... 26 

" IV. — Isle of "Wig-ht to London, - - 36 

" Y. — British Museum and St. Paul's, - 47 

" VI. — First Sabbath in London — Wesley's 

Grave — Westminster Abbey, - 58 

" VII. — The Parks and Tower of London, - 71 

" VIII. — Academy of Arts — Mad. Tussaud's G-al- 

lery — City Road Chapel — St. Paut's, 85 

" IX. — Wi:tTDSOR Castle — Herschel's Grave- 

Gray's Elegy — An English Family, ] 00 

" X. — Tomb oe Thomson — Pope's Grotto — 
Hampton Court Palace — Crystal 
Palace, HI 

" XI. — Whitfield's Chapel — London Docks — 
Greenwich Observatory — National 
Gallery — Bunhill Fields Burial 
Grounds, 125 



V] C O N T v. N T R . 

OHAPTBR XII . — A Prayer-Meeting — Seeing the Queen 

AND Royal Family', - - - 141 

" XIII. — Leaving London — Trip to Edinburgh, 148 

" _ XI Y. — Green Cemetery — Arthur's Seat — Mel- 
rose Abbey — Dryburgh Abbey and 
Abbotsford, - ■ - . 171 

" XY. — Jedburgh xIbbey — Kelso Abbey — Ros- 

lin Chapel — IsTorthern Scotland, 186 

•' XYI. — Ireland — Giant's Causeway — Belfast 

—Dublin. 197 



§tt»0|m.tt ^fUfUt^ 



CHAPTER I. 

EMBARKATION. 

jSaiuj'day, May 5th. 

The day dawned charmingly — we were up 
bright and early, for at eleven o'clock A.M. 
the steamer was to sail, I paused a moment 
as I looked from the window, to reflect if our 
plans were all complete. The two years that 
had glided so rapidly and pleasantly away, 
and had closed so gloriously, came up before 
me sparkling with the precious jewels that 
had been added to the Church, that might at 
one day shine in our crowns of rejoicing. 

The last ^' hard knot " had been tied, the 
darling fees of which had constructed a 
golden bridge that spanned the wide Atlantic, 
and ran witli me over many miles of the Old 
World. 

The foundation on which Mr. N had 

buiided hopes to climb where " Moses stood 

1 



8 LEAFLET S . 

and view the landscape o'er," had been made 
firm by his friends, who had placed in it a 
sure corner-stone on which was engraven in 
golden letters, one thousand dollars. The 
passports were secured, the note of credit 
made out, the tickets purchased, the effects 
of house-keeping all stowed away, and the 
happy home at the parsonage transferred to 
others. We had received the blessing of our 
angel mother, also a golden toJaen. from our 

friends in A , where we had spent two 

happy years. All is complete, thought I, and 
had just drawn up my bow and was watching 
the arrow flying into the future to strike a 
target away off in Europe, when I remem- 
bered that my limited wardrobe and the 
choice paraphernalia I had selected as neces- 
sary for such a journey was not yet packed^ 
and a decree had gone forth that one small 
trunk and carpet-bag must contain all I was 
to carry with me. It has been asserted by 
many of the '' lords of creation " that the ladies 
usually carry about half, if not more, of their 
traveling expenses in huge trunks ; for my 
part, I was willing and even anxious to refute 
this idea. How closely did Mrs. H and 



EMBARKATION. 9 

myself crowd all into that dear little trunk 
and one carpet-bag ! But alas for the valise 

which Mr. N had imagined would hold 

all he wished to carry. By the way, it is also 
said that gentlemen have to take but very 
little with them when they travel ; however, 
when the valise was packed and crowded to 
its utmost capacity, it was minus, I reckon, 
some forty or fifty books, and many other ar- 
ticles that would have coaxed themselves into 
my little trunk had it not been locked and 
strapped securely. Another trunk was im- 
mediately ordered, and well filled, making us 
at this time equal in the baggage line. 

At a few moments past ten o'clock the car- 
riages drove to the door. We took an affec- 
tionate leave of our noble lady, Mrs. B , 

who had in her unceasing kindness been next 
to our own dear mother. Our friend Mr. 

D , and some other members of the family, 

took seats with us in the carriage, and away 
we drove. It was only a few moments and 
we were safely on the noble steamer Vander- 
hilt^ where we were greeted by a host of 
friends who had gathered there to see us ofil 
Owing to the low tide we were detained for 



10 LEAFLETS. 

several hours, and did not leave until nearly 
four o'clock P. M. The time, however, was 
delightfully spent, chatting with this one and 
that one who were precious to our hearts' best 
affections by many acts of love, and who in 
these moments were breathing a thousand 
kind wishes for our safety and success. At 
last came the sound of the warning bell, and 
with it the shout ''all ashore." Farewell, 
love's last watchword, trembled on every lip 
as we parted. In a moment more the steamer 
was loosed, and we were moving slowly but 
gracefully away. 

Crowds thronged the wharf, among which 
the waving of " woman's token " looked like 
snow-flakes in Autumn ; while stouter hearts 
and louder voices gave out round after round 
of hearty cheers. Those on board smiled 
amid their tears, and bowed and waved grate- 
ful adieux. Our ship returned the compli- 
ments of the hour by a parting salute from 
the gun on board. 

As we sailed out of the beautiful bay of 
New York we watched the crowd until they 
mingled in the busy throng. Still how de- 
votedly we looked until every spire and 



EMBARKATION. 11 

dome faded from om^ view ; nor did we turn 
our wishful gaze till the very shadows of the 
last dim outline of the narrow point of land 
that stretches far out into the sea was lost to 
sight. 

The sky was hung with the mellow, suh- 
dued coloring of approaching twilight, span- 
gled by a few fading beams of the setting sun, 
as we bade adieu to our own native land. 



■^ 



CHAPTER II. 



OCEAN VOYAGE, 



Let us turn now to our '' life on the ocean 
wave, and our home on the rolling deep." 
We had not been out long when we were sum- 
moned to the dining saloon ; but, strange as 
it may appear, I can not recall any thing that 
occurred after we went down, or any thing 
that was served at the dinner. I only remem- 
ber we were furnished with seats at the cap- 
tain's table. Very soon we were on deck 
again, looking at the ocean, whose bosom was 
as calm as that of a sleeping infant's. Some 
were promenading rapidly to and fro, the 
length of the deck ; others had already re- 
tired to their rooms ; while a few sat pen- 
sively, as I did, looking down into the clear 
depths below. Such a calm, undisturbed twi- 
light, the first ever witnessed by me at sea, 
seemed peculiarly fitted for reflection. What 
an eventful day was closing ! which appeared 



OCEAN VOYAGE. 13 

like a whole volume in life's histoiy , in which 
every hour had wrought pages, and the mo- 
ments had drawn the lines. Recollections 
and anticipations, in rapid alternation, began 
to crowd upon my mind, when the calm spirit 
of the evening touched the electric chord and 
whispered to my heart, bringing back with a 
strange and winning power, departed years 
and childhood's days in all their bloom and 
freshness — thoughts that had long slumbered 
awakened, with a^housand fond associations, 
dear familiar faces wreathed with gay 
smiles, or tears appeared from their hidden 
depths ; while ever and anon I seemed to 
hear sweet voices greeting me, as visions 
bright and sad came trooping through mem- 
ory's vista. The past was thus looming up be- 
fore me richly ladened with treasured joys and 
burdened with but few sorrows, when Mr. 
N came up and offered me his arm, say- 
ing we must go to our rooms, as it was be- 
coming quite damp. I looked up, surprised 
to see that it was dark, and that the little 
stars had begun to look out of their ethereal 
windows down upon us, as if to assure us that 
our wise mother nature does not extinguish 



14 LEAFLETS. 

all her lights when she lets fall the curtain of 
night which hides the king of day, and at the 
same time silences all voices in the great 
world-house without. How still was every 
thing around us, not a sound reached our ear 
except the voices of the few that remained on 
deck, or those who, like ourselves, were pass- 
ing in two by two into our ark of safety for 
the night. As we entered, I could but remark 
that our little state-room really looked cosy ; 
but, somehow, I have always had a dislike to 
those kind of beds wliere one above the other 
we were to stretch our wearied limbs ; and 
then there was something ominous in those 
two mysterious little semi-circular green 
painted tins with hooks attaching them to 
the heads of our berths, which I tried to be- 
lieve would be of no use to me. 

After reading the Bible, and asking Him 
w^hose eyelids never close to watch over us, 
we extinguished our little lamp and retired, 
with a still small voice whispering to us that 
He who rules the winds and the waves loved 
us as his children. The lights were put out 
in the saloons at eleven o'clock, but my eyes 
refused to close in sleep. It was a strange 



OCEAN VOYAGE. 15 

night to me, cradled on the heaving bosom of 
^' Old Ocean," and rocked by the gentle winds ; 
still, very much like a stubborn child, I either 
could not or would not sleep until near day- 
dawn. 

Sunday Morning. — I awoke after having 
enjoyed what seemed to me only a little 
''cat nap" — it was so brief; and then 
when I opened my eyes and raised my head, 
it was only to feel a strange, unpleasant sen- 
sation, with fearful forebodings of '' unsettled 
accounts." I arose and began to dress, hop- 
ing that going out on deck, in the open air, 
it might pass off. I had not been standing 
long, when, instead of passing off, it seemed 
intuitively to pass right into that little green 
tin still hanging on my berth. Right heartily 
had I laughed the day before on hearing some 
one ask if these green things were life-pre- 
servers. Alas ! I began now to think they 
were life depositors. Mr. N — — had been 
invited to preach in the saloon at half-past 
ten o'clock, and already I heard the sweet 
singing. After awhile I managed to get up, 
and found a large and interesting congre- 
gation assembled in the upper saloon, in 



16 LEAFLETS. 

the centre of which stood a table covered 
"VYith our national flag, with the stars and 
stripes gloriously displayed ; and on it lay a 
Bible and several Books of Common Prayer. 

Mr. L read the service, and Mr. N 

preached. All listened, as if impressed that 
it was an hour of heartfelt worship. As soon 
as the exercises closed, nearly all went on 
deck to breathe the fresh air. The morning 
was surpassingly lovely, worthy, indeed, to 
be called one of the days of the Son of Man. 
The waters surrounded us like a vast un- 
known expanse, over which our gallant 
steamer was gliding in queenly pride and 
beauty. 

While on deck, the attention and S3^mpa- 
thies of many were enlisted at the sight of a 
little weary wanderer, with drooping wing, 
which the zephyrs of the previous night had 
wafted along after us. " !" exclaimed one, 
in poetic rapture, '' it may be a bird of pas- 
sage sent to bring under its tiny wing a 
precious missive for some of us from loved 
ones we have left behind." Not thus, but 
like the '^ ark dove," it was seeking a resting 
place for the sole of its foot. Noah like, one 



OCEAN VOYAGE. 17 

of the gentlemen reached out his hand and 
took it in, when it became an object of great 
curiosity ; but very soon, either from fatigue 
or fear at having been made a^ prisoner, it 
fluttered for a while, then gasped and died. 

Toward evening a breeze came up, which 
soon tipped the waves with white, which 
caused our floating palace to roll and stoop 
with many graceful and dignified airs, until 
the gentle warbling and pensive sighing of 
the winds, which at first was music, had now 
increased to a doleful wail. Proud Neptune 
was triumphing, and thus early on our voyage 
this cruel old '' Ocean King " began abruptly 
to demand his '^ tribute money." Some sub- 
mitted without delay, and strong men were 
forced to yield to him the sceptre of their 
power, and allow the imperious monarch 
to collect his revenues, which, under all cir- 
cumstances, were paid over in genuine coin, 
bearing the image and superscription of the 
sea. Once, in my school days, when trying 
to solve a mental mathematical problem, we 
proved in the end that all live within a circle 
whose centre is the will ; the radius may vary,, 
but the centre will remain fixed. My will 



18 LEAFLETS. 

was firm not to be sick again ; but before night 
I began to know that the radius was varjing 
so rapidly, I thought it best to flee to my 
room, where I surrendered, will and all. 

Many little incidents served to beguile the 
weary hours, and somewhat relieved the 
tedium of the voyage. We had no cause for 
fear, for our Captain, though a quiet man^ 
and of few words, was vigilant and always 
at his post, and, if I am any judge, he was 
every inch a gentleman ; and the good natur- 
ed, social Doctor, with his chubby smiling 
face, was enough to drive away sea-sickness, 
at least, to prevent hydrophobia, from its 
fatal effects. Among many of the passengers 
we did not fail to discover a high tone in their 

character. Mrs. F , the wife of our 

American Minister in Paris, havino; herself 
escaped sea-sickness, visits the rooms of the 
suffering, and cheers them by the light of her 
countenance. Robert Dale Owen is very 
social. The troop of dramatic singers are 
very musical ; besides these, there are several 
eminent physicians and wealthy merchants 
with their families, and many others, whose 
society we might enjoy if it were not that the 



OCEAN VOYAGE. 19 

waters are constantly troubled, and thereby 
we are troubled. There are on board French^ 
Spanish, English, Scotch, Germans and Amer- 
ican passengers, reminding us that we are 
traversing the great highway of nations. A 
Frenchman brought on board a favorite pony, 
which was an object of our sympathy when we 
ascertained that he had been a fearful subject 
of sea-sickness — also a noble Newfoundland 
dog, who, as he sat in his kennel all day, was 
a very life-like picture of ''patience on a mon- 
mnent smiling at grief." " The sea still 
wrought and was tempestuous," which gave 
to the saloons the appearance of a first-class 
hospital ; there was no walking or talking ; 
even the ladies were as mum as you please — 
every one was either sitting or reclining at 
full length on the sofas, with these words 
deeply engraven on their elongated, forlorn, 
woe-begone countenances : '' the heart know- 
eth its own bitterness," or ''my misery is 
greater than I can bear." Some declared they 
would never be caught at sea again ; others 
were contriving to return by way of Behi-ing's 
Straits. About this time the purser came 
around calling for the tickets. One lady had 



20 LEAFLETS. 

some difficulty in finding hers, but consoled 
herself with the hope that if it was not found 
they would stop the ship and put her off; but 
on this liquid highway there are no grateful 
depots, not even one half-way house — all 
must '' to the end endure " who hope to see 
the land. I do really believe there were some 
that would have made but very little resist- 
ance had an attempt been made to have 
thrown them overboard. 

Thursday. — A dark, dismal and stormy 
day closed upon a fearful and densely foggy 
night, which brought with it only visions of 
icebergs, collisions, wrecks and sudden de- 
struction. Our ship continued to roll and 
pitch in a chop sea at a tremendous rate — 
fitful repose claimed the place of sound sleep. 

Mr. N was so quiet I supposed he was in 

the land of Nod, when suddenly, with a sort 
of desperate spring, he precipitated his bundle 
of humanity from the upper berth, sayings as 
he did so: "I can't endure it any longer; I'm 
going up on deck to see the moon rise.'^ 
Before I had time to entreat him not to go, 
he closed the door and was gone. I think I 
was never so near being paralyzed with fear; 



OCEAN VOYAGE. 21 

the timbers in the ship were writhing and 
creaking, and threatened every moment to 
divide ; the winds groaned and howled furi- 
ously ; the waves leaping and dashing against 
the sides of the ship, thundering with the 
deafening roar and fury of a thousand cata- 
racts. Looking through the window I could 
see the maddened storm, and fancied I 
saw a mountain wave dash over the vessel, 
and carry him with it into the frowning deep. 
I thought I saw him grappling and buffeting 
with the angry waters. ! it was awful ! it 
was like a fearful nightmare. In utter des- 
pair, I listened to the winds and waves chant- 
ing dolefully his requiem. It was like seeing 
one rise from the dead, when he again en- 
tered, and very coolly said : " He thought 
it would be sometime before her majesty 
would make her nightly debut." I rather 
doubted if he ventured on deck at all. For 
hours we remained at the mercy of the 
Storm King. Before morning, however, the 
sea calmed, and when day unbarred the 
Oriental gates, and Sol rode up in his golden 
chariot, I can never forget the course of 
tremulous radiance that reached down, and 



22 LEAF LETS. 

stretching along on the water, which seemed 
like a golden highway cast up for the Being 
who, in the days of His incarnation, walked 
on the sea to His disciples, and saying to the 
raging storm : " Peace ! be still ! and there 
was a great calm." Had not His mandate, 
unheard by us, quieted the- storm 7 — for thus 
was the sea calm unto us in the morning. 
As soon as the sun rose, the decks were 
crowded ; there was a general resurrection of 
wasted energies, and many who had not been 
out of their berths before, '' came forth." 
How fresh, how delightful and invigorating, 
were the pulsations of this new life ! All 
day long the decks looked like a little com- 
munity turned out on a holiday. 

Again it is Sabbath morning, and the hour 
for divine service ; the National flag, as on 
the previous Sabbath, is spread out over the 
table in the centre of the saloon. Catholics, 
Protestants, Infidels, and even Jews, meet with 
one accord, and unite in songs of praise. Mr. 
N then read the beautiful English ser- 
vice, and Mr. L preached. He was pale 

from sea-sickness, and seemed thoughtful even 
to sadness. His sermon, however, carried 



OCEAN VOYAGE. 23 

with it a sweet and hallowed influence. I 
think I have seldom looked upon a brow more 
pure and spiritual than his. He is to be Dr. 
M'Clintock's assistant in the American Union 
Chapel in Paris. Many blessings go with 
him. The weather continues fine ; the 
bright side of "life on the ocean wave" be- 
gins to throw its charms all around us. 

Tuesday morning brought us within sight 
of land, welcome, thrice welcome to our weary 
eyes. As if by magic, every trace of sea- 
sickness had disappeared, and every coun- 
tenance glowed with rapture. The eventful 
voyage to us (it being our first) would 
soon terminate, and for the first time it 
seemed- short, and I could but regret that 
I had been a fettered captive, which had 
prevented my enjoying any portion of it, 
or seeing any thing. How my childhood's 
dreamy vagaries had fled in regard to the 
grand and sublime of " Old Ocean," and of 
Neptune sweeping along in his misty chariot, 
with airy steeds, over coral reefs and beds of 
pearl, followed by the beaded bubbles from 
every wave. I saw no laughing schools of 
porpoises, fantastic, gay mermaids, mammoth 



24 LEAFLETS. 

whales, greedy sharks, slimy serpents, with 
all the host of sea-monsters and w^onders. 
Intense interest and excitement prevailed as 
we passed the precipitous promontory, and 
threaded what is known as the Needles, which 
are three large, misshapen, chalk-like rocks, 
twenty feet high, having been washed from 
the mainland by the action of the sea. Alone' 
they stand in solitary grandeur, not unlike 
the majestic pillars of some unfinished temple. 

We glided slowly along the calm waters of 
the Solent. On our right extended the Isle 
of Wight, in all the beauty of budding spring- 
time ; the rugged cliffs and jutting headlands 
of the promontor}^ now^ assumed a gentle slop- 
ing landscape, varied in its scenery by thick 
wooded lawns and little villages, princely 
houses, blooming gardens, with verdant mea- 
dows reaching down to the margin, and kissing 
the sleeping waters of this beautiful bay. 

Our steamer was bound to Ha.vre, but about 
half-past ten o'clock A. M., she anchored in 
the stream opposite a little town by the name 
of Cowes ; here a smaller steamer came up to 
our side to take those going to Southampton. 
Just at this moment we decided to spend a 



OCEAN VOYAGE. 25 

short time, at least, on the garden Isle. We 
left our noble steamer, and from the smaller 
steamer we stepjDed into a little row boat, 

wdiich was filled by Mr. T 's and Mr. 

J 's families and ourselves, and was row- 
ed to land, a distance of about one-fourth of a 
mile, by two live, red-faced Englishmen. As 
we sprang on shore, a happier company me- 
thinks never pressed Britain's soil. We shout- 
ed, in triumphant concert, ''glorious terra 
firma!" How I would have enjoyed to have 
made this fair Isle, which at this moment ap- 
peared to be our Eden restored, vocal with 
glad alleluiahs, which were running all over 
me in blest ecstacy. I felt not unlike an old 
hero, who, when he came in sight of the 
towers and domes of the once glorious Jeru- 
salem, fell prostrate and kissed the ground — 
I am sure I could have thus clasped this 
wanton earth in my embrace. 



CHAPTER III. 

ISLE OF WIGHT. 

We stopped at the Gloucester Hotel, which 
is only a few feet from the water's edge. At 
twelve we ordered lunch, but I will not at- 
tempt to describe that ample joint of roast 
beef, and the delicious cottage bread that was 
set before us, neither will I tell you how much 
we stowed away, for I do not know. It is 
enough to know that we had been fasting for 
ten or eleven days, which gave us a capacity 
to do justice to our appetites that had return- 
ed to us, strengthened by almost total absti- 
nence. Having been tossed, rocked, pitched, 
rolled, reeled, and tumbled for so many days 
by a sort of liquid earthquake, it was difficult 
to do away with the illusion that we were not 
still moving involuntarily. After lunch we 
took carriages and rode out over the Island, 
which is some twenty miles in length, and 
twelve in breadth, with a population of about 
iifty-iive thousand. 0, what a charming di- 



ISLE OF VflGHT. 27 

versity of natural scenery, all harmonizing to 
make one perfect scene of loveliness ! The 
roads were like long winding leafy lanes, em- 
bowered by venerable trees, and inclosed by 
the most beautiful hawthorn hedges. Little' 
spring flowers of pdmost every hue were grow- 
ing wild and luxuriantly by the way-side ; here 
and there were neat little thatched roofed 
cottages, around the doors of which were 
playing rosy-cheeked children, and the un- 
pretending morning-glories were creeping up, 
to curtain with nature's own drapery the win- 
dows of humble and honest industry. 

The Isle of Wight has a stirring history, and 
in its archives are the records of many thrill- 
ing events of kings and queens, brave knights, 
and noble lords ; and here many proud monu- 
ments have been erected to attest their glory : 
but, alas, the uncourtly hand of time has al- 
ready written "Ichabod" on these proud monu- 
ments and castle homes of crowned heads 
and sceptred hands. The cloud of oblivion 
is also vailing the chivalrous deeds, the glit- 
tering spears and jeweled helmets of earldom 
and knighthood. But religion has rea.red, on 
this fair Isle, one monument of which the de- 



28 LEAFLETS. 

vastating hand of time will have no power to 
crumble and destroy, and when age after age 
shall number its cycles with eternity ; long 
after the humble cottage, and the modest 
church in which is the pew, still shown, where 
she used to sit, and the green mound that 
heaves above the last resting-place of Eliza- 
beth Wallbridge, sleeping quietly her last long 
Bleep; after all these have been leveled by 
decay, and every trace disappear, still many 
^ pilgrim from far and wide will wend their 
way, and bow, in reverent love, before this 
pure shrine of early piety. Who can point 
to old age, with failing eyesight, that has not 
pored over this simple record of her modest 
Christian life and exultant death ! and where 
is the child that has not paused amid its frolic 
and play to listen to the story of "the Dairy- 
man's Daughter," so touchingiy narrated by 
Leigh Richmond '? 

Carisbrook Castle is a stupendous pile of 
mouldering ruins ; my simple unsophisticated 
childhood never dreamed of such magnificent 
deca}^ But it is a reality. I am standing, 
for the first time, and gazing on castellated 
walls, grand amid their rum. We entered 



ISLE OF WIGHT. 2^ 

this castle between two bastions, hoary with 
age, and passed through a small stone gate- 
way. On the front of the arch there is a shield 
inscribed with the initial letters E. R. and 
the figure 40 — the 40th year of Queen Eliza- 
beth's reign— and this arched gateway is con- 
sidered an architectural relic of her reign. 
We soon reached another gateway of still 
greater antiquity, the gate made of strongs 
lattice work, joined with large round-headed 
nails at each crossing. The gate was opened,, 
and we were admitted by a fair maiden, whose 
very smile seemed full of romance, her saucy 
little hat, and velvet jacket, and white kid 
gloves strangely contrasted with the venera- 
ble walls of the old castle ; she is the successor 
of an older sister, whom, we were informed, a 
romantic Frenchman saw here for the first 
time, and wooed her to his Parisian home. 
On either side of this portal are immense 
round towers of great strength ; and, passing 
into the inclosure on the left, are the ruins of 
the Chapel of St. Nicholas ; a kitchen garden, 
filled with vegetables, growing on the place 
once used as an abbey or cemetery ! After ex- 
amining these ruins we proceeded to Eliza- 



30 LEAFLETS. 

betli's apartments, where the echo of three 
hundred years seemed to brmg hack the 
voices of England's nobility. This proud and 
ambitious Queen swayed a powerful sceptre 
in this age of periwigs and knee-buckles and 
frivolous display, which has left but few glori- 
ous memories of noble thoughts and noble 
deeds. The ceilings are lofty, and still bear 
the impress of roypJ grandeur. The marble 
mantel-piece remains perfect, around which 
kings and queens once watched the blazing 
fire that glowed beneath this olden marble. 
The apartments where Charles the First was 
imprisoned are in a perfectly ruinous state. 
Mr. N. climbed up with the greatest difficulty 
to the window from which the unfortu- 
nate king, in attempting to escape, was taken, 
and soon after beheaded. After clambering 
up broken stairways, we commenced a circuit 
of the immense but crumbling walls, gnawed 
away and eaten out in many places by the 
destroying tooth of time, and pressed down 
by the leaden foot of hundreds of years, un- 
til they are no longer their original height. 
The exterior of the walls is richly mantled 
with ivy, and the top ornamented with an 



ISLE OF WIGHT. 31 

abundance of wall-flowers. As we were walk- 
ing along, the, stones would loosen, and as they 
crumbled off, rattle down amid the deep thick- 
et of tangled and thickly matted cypress and 
jasmine growing within the walls far below. 
At last we succeeded in gaining the top of 
the old Saxon tower, where we could look out 
on one of the most enchanting landscapes 
spread out on every side in extensive pano- 
ramic views. My eye wandered through a 
leafy opening a little in the distance, until I 
caught a glimpse of the silvery lake on whose 
placid bosom Roman galleys reposed in olden 
times. After going down one flight of steps 
after another, and winding around through 
gloomy passage ways, in descending from 
these high walls, said to be in some places 
eighteen feet in thickness, we reached the 
bottom, where, in a sequestered nook, we 
found the Dungeon Well, of Roman construc- 
tion, three hundred feet deep, now nearly fill- 
ed with rubbish and stones. In another place 
we found the Garrison Well, of great interest, 
which is three hundred and ten feet deep, 
with an inexhaustible supply of pure water, 
raised in an immense bucket by a reflective 



32 LEAFLETS. 

donkey, whose name is John. Castle tradi- 
tion very gravely informed us that this 
patient John Donkey was of royal ances- 
try, and now filled his place in the regular 
succession, his honorable predecessors having 
faithfully performed the same duty of step- 
ping round and round this endless wheel, 
one for forty years, and another forty-five. 
The ladies in our company rewarded his toil 
by feeding him bread and cakes, which he 
ate from their hands. 

We now left the Castle, and, on returning 
home, we passed Prince Albert's model farms^ 
some of which were inclosed with brick walls, 
others by beautifully trimmed hedges. Their 
appearance, as far as we could see, evinced a 
high state of cultivation. The great attrac- 
tion of the Island for a few years past has 
been the Osborne House, the sea-side resi- 
dence of Queen Victoria, where she celebrates 
her birth-day in the quiet of her family ; 
where the young Princes and Princesses each 
have flower and vegetable gardens, and green- 
houses and tool chests, and even a carpenter's 
shop. The young Princes are encouraged by 
the noble Prince Consort to practice garden- 



ISLE OF WIGHT. 33 

ing and farming. The Princesses follow the 
lovely Queen into the kitchen, where they 
pry into all the mysteries of cooking and 
pastry, floured to the elbows at one time, at 
another preserving the fruits of their own 
garden, to be eaten on the royal table, or 
given out to the poor of the neighborhood. 
Here the most refined and exalted tastes are 
cultivated ; Nature studied in all its depart- 
ments ; and specimens of rocks and flow^ers, 
and birds and animals, are carefully arranged 
in their museum; and not only studied, but 
Nature, in all its diversity, is loved and ad- 
mired. In a word, they are allowed to run 
wild and free, not unlike other happy chil- 
dren, considering it no condescension to royal 
dignity to have a practical knowledge of what 
labor is. It is asserted that the royal family 
are never happier than during their sojourn 
at Osborne. We stopped our carriage at 
the entrance, hoping to gain access to the 
grounds, if not to the Palace, but were not 
allowed, on account of the preparations being 
made for the coming of Her Majesty in a few 
days. We urged the venerable porter, telling 
him we were from America, and this was the 



34 LEAFLETS. 

only opportunity we would have ; but the 
dear, faithful old man assured us he could not 
allow us to enter if half of the kingdom were 
given him, for by so doing he would forfeit 
his post of honor. He was very kind, and 
allowed us to look as far over the ground as 
we could, and gave me a little bouquet and 
offered me a fuchsie nicely growing in a 
flower-pot, which I was obliged to refuse, not 
being able to care for it during my journey. 
I thought, how I wish I could send it to some 
of my friends as a royal present. We thanked 
him over and over again for his kindness, and 
just as we were leaving he asked : '' Do you 
know my brother in America by the name of 
Smith, and living in a place called Brazil V^ 
We assured him that we knew several by that 
name in America, but we were sorry to say 
we doubted whether or no they were any of 
them his brother, as Brazil was in South 
America, a great many miles from where we 
lived in New York, which was in North 
America. He looked rather disappointed, and 
we left. Returning to our hotel about six 
o'clock, we found our English dinner we 
had ordered before leaving, smoking on the 



ISLE OF WIGHT. ' 35 

table, which seemed to groan under the weight 
of abundance, particularly roast beef and plum 
pudding. Without these it would have failed 
to be genuine English. It would be ridicu- 
lously superfluous to add that we enjoyed this 
dinner under the circumstances — our good 
landlord and lady doing all in their power to 
supply all our wants, being exceedingl}^ 
affable and polite, thanking us over and over 
as they removed our empty plates, and even 
thanking us for thanking them. Who can ever 
do justice in describing the luxury of a good 
English bed, and a large, well-aired room, the 
first night after an ocean voyage "? 



8^^ 



CHAPTEE lY. 

ISLE OF WIGHT TO LONDON. 

May nth. — This morning we sailed from 
the Isle of Wight to Southampton. When 
about fifteen miles on our way we stopped to 
visit the Great Eastern as she lay anchored 
in the stream. She is magnificent, and her 
proportions are immense. At a little dis- 
tance her masts and smoke-pipes resemble the 
spires and chimneys of a little village. As 
our tiny steamer came under her mountain 
sides, where we could look along her length, 
twice that of any of our largest steamers, and 
with a height towering far above us, we gained 
some idea of her tremendous size. Her inte- 
rior arrangements are ample and elegant. 
We continued our sail for five miles, when we 
reached Southampton, where we took a car- 
riage and went immediately to the depot, 
and purchased our tickets for the train 



T O LONDON . 37 

leaving for London. The English do not 
check baggage as we do in America. They 
weigh it, and charge by the pound for trans- 
porting it. Here comes in the advantage of 
small trunks. As we had three or four hours 
to spend in Dr. Watts' native town — he whose 
memory is rendered sacred in the hearts of 
thousands by his psalms and hymns — we be- 
gan to contrive the best way to enjoy our- 
selves, and see the most before the cars should 
leave. We would not have time to visit the 
forest-embosomed Netley Abbey, which is two 
miles distant, and see Southampton too. After 
walking through all the prominent streets, we 
very fortunately gained permission to enter 
the splendid grounds of the archdeacon, who 
had recently been chosen bishop, and had 
left to enjoy his higher honors. The taste in 
which the gardens and grounds are arranged 
makes them exquisitely beautiful. The build- 
ings are plain but substantial, and all the 
rooms neatly and appropriately furnished. 
The walls that surround the grounds are 
loaded on the outside with ivy, and in the in- 
terior fruit trees of all kinds are trained with 
great care and skill, which were in bloom, 



38 LEAFLETS. 



filling the air with fragrance. The vegetable 
garden gave signs of plentj-. The extensive 
hot-houses were filled with rich and choice 
exotics. The walks are spacious — the lawn 
soft and green — the venerable shade-trees, lux- 
uriant in their foliage. Oh! thought I, what 
a charming retreat for study and reflection, 
away from the noise and bustle of the world, 
amid budding spring flowers and under the 
graceful, nodding plumes of grand old elms. 
We need not wonder at the refinement and 
ability of the clergy of the Established Church 
while England provides such homes for her 
prelates. 

The time imperceptibly glided away, and 
the hour had arrived for the train to leave. 
We hastened to the depot. The cars were 
really quite a curiosity to us, so unlike the 
ones we have at home. They are not as long 
as ours, but with doors on each side which 
admitted us into little apartments with two 
cushioned seats extending the width of the 
car, calculated to accommodate about twelve 
persons, who must sit facing each other. 
There are several classes of cars, known as 
first class, second, third, and fourth. The 



TO LONDON. 39 

first class are very elegant, with seats as easy 
as an armed chair ; the second about the same 
as ours in: style ; the third are not cushioned 
at all ; the fourth are open at the windows, 
or rather no windows at all, and the people 
who ride in them stand huddled in like the 
cattle in our freight cars. We had purchased 
our tickets for the second class, which we en- 
tered as we saw it marked on the outside. 
But few, except the very wealthy, ride in the 
first class, as the expense is nearly double ; 
and none but the poorer class ride in the 
third. The result is, the second class cars 
are usually filled with very wholesome, re- 
spectable people. But it must be remembered 
the English always say "going by rail," and 
•' taking seats in the coach." They did not seem 
to understand us when we said " we were going 
in the cars." At the moment we were taking 
our seats I observed a man who looked like a 
living, walking skeleton, attempting to enter ; 
but no one seemed willing to have a sick per- 
son in the apartment they occupied. We im- 
mediately invited him in where we were, and 
arranged a place for him to recline, and thus 
ride comfortably. He seemed very grateful for 



40 LEAFLETS. 

our attention to liim ; but, oil ! how piteously 
lie was wasted by consumption, and the lamp 
of life flickered faintly. We learned from 
him that he was just returning from a long 
expedition to India, v/itli a cherished hope of 
dying in the quiet of his own home, at the 
mention of which his sunken eyes kindled 
into radiance. What will not weary and 
wasted nature endure that those we love may 
soothe our dying pillow 1 Poor man ! the last 
we saw of him was when we reached the 
great city. I trust his frail bark reached the 
home-haven, to receive once more the smiles 
of kindred and friends. It rained nearly all 
the way ; but as the train did not run rap- 
idly, it gave us a fine opportunity to see the 
country, and the thatched-roofed homes of 
Merrie England's husbandry. The fields were 
richly carpeted in green, and venerable trees 
adorned them everywhere. We could see 
neatly trimmed hedges running in all direc- 
tions, at one time in curves, then in straight 
lines, and again crossing each other in every 
variety of angles, interlacing the entire coun- 
try in a perfect net- work of beauty. In about 
three hours from the time we left Southamp- 



TO LONDON. 41 

ton we reached London, the great metropolis 
of the world. 

We hnmediatelj selected a carriage from 
the long line that bounded one side of the 
depot, in which we entered, and were soon 
on the famous London Bridge, which spans 
the River Thames. Here our eyes began 
to open on the wonders of the great city 
we had just entered. This extraordinary 
bridge was commenced in 1825, and opened 
by King William the Fourth, in 1831. It 
cost two millions sterling, and is very pon- 
derous in its construction, being built of huge 
blocks of granite, supported by five massive 
semi-eliptical arches. As soon as our car- 
riage drove on to the bridge, I observed that 
the road through the centre was thronged 
with a variety of vehicles, and the broad 
stone sidewalk teemed with a walking com- 
munity. Above each pier are niches, with 
stone seats, where the weary were resting 
from their burdens ; and over the parapet, 
idlers were hanging in careless indolence. 
On reaching the centre of the bridge, the 
most complete world in miniature appeared 
before us. A forest of shipping extended on 



42 LEAFLETS. 

either side of the river, and through the cen- 
tre little steamers were constantly puffing 
their black smoke, having their decks crowded 
with people. Through the thick, murky at- 
mosphere at our right, I at once recognized 
the dome of St. Paul's, with its golden ball 
and gilded cross, as it loomed up in grandeur ; 
and a little beyond was the Tower of London, 
with its unmistakable quartette of turrets. 
The sky was entirely obscured by the im- 
penetrable vail of smoke and vapor, which 
seemed to me to be the breath of invisible 
greatness going up continually, "filling the air 
and darkening heaven." As we left the 
bridge, we at once plunged into densely 
crowded and compact streets, alike dingy and 
gloomy. We ordered our coachman to take 
us to Queen Ann's Square, Holborn, which he 
did, and as we stopped before No. 11, and 
the servant came to the door to answer the 
ringing of the bell, I could but observe what 
was to me a mysterious chain across the door- 
way, behind which he stood. It was re- 
moved, as we approached, to allow us to pass, 
and immediately replaced, while the door re- 
mained open. '' Can I see the lady of the 



TO LONDON. 43 

boarding-house ?" said Mr. N . I stood 

beside him, not daring to move in such a 
gloomy place — having my eyes fixed on the 
chain across the door, thinking what it could 
be intended for. It was only a moment, when 
a tail old lady marched into the hall, dressed 
in black, and wearing a widow's cap. Ad- 
dressing her as Mrs. M- , to which she as- 
sented, we informed her that we wished 
rooms. After asking us by whom we v/ere 
recommended, and receiving our card, given 

to us by Dr. A , of New York, ^' I can take 

3^ou in," said she, and stepping to the door 
ordered our baggage to be brought in, and 
closed after it the heavy door. The old lady 
then called at the top of her voice, '' Mar-ga- 
ret — Mar-ga-ret ;" a little Scotch girl in- 
stantly answered the call, and was commanded 
to show us our rooms. 

It was nearly dark, and I, being tired, stag- 
gered and stumbled along up the first flight 
of stairs ; and, turning to go up the next, I 
suddenly came in contact with a tall, old-fash- 
ioned clock, whose slender mahogany frame 
reached from the floor nearly to the ceiling, 
and the only apology I could exact for its be- 



44 LEAFLETS. 

ing in my way, as I looked up into its face, 
was ''tick, tack; tick, tack." On the third 
floor we entered our rooms, into which our 
trunks had preceded us. I looked around for 
a moment in perfect amazement, and then 

asked Mr. N if he thought this was the 

usual style of English boarding-houses, or if 
he supposed they were cleaning house and had 
given us the wrong room '] No carpet on the 
floor — not even painted. The bureau and 
chairs made us think of Queen Anne's time, 
whose statue we had observed in a little park 
in front of the house ; but, with increased as- 
tonishment, I turned and looked at the great 
mountain of feathers towering nearly to the 
ceiling, resting upon an old-fashioned high- 
post bedstead, with a drab-colored frill flutter- 
ing, like sombre clouds of Autumn, above and 
around the top. I looked around to see the 
ladder we were to use to climb up into bed. 
We were relieved in a few moments by the 
ringing of the tea-bell. On the flrst floor we 
were shown to the dining-room, where we 
found a table reaching nearly the length of 
the room, around which several boarders were 
already seated. The old lady we had met at 



TOLONDON. 45 

the door sat very erect at the head of the ta- 
ble ; and, as soon as we had taken our seats, 
she rapidly pronounced the blessing. The 
table was covered with a dark brocatelle cloth, 
with little blue plates — just exactly like some 
my mother has that must have been her grand- 
mother's — without a knife or fork, which 
would have been of no use, for the bread, 
which was cut in very thin slices, was already 
buttered ; two glass bottles of water, and a 
few tumblers, were all that was on the table, 
except the tea-service at the head of the ta- 
ble, which consisted of a few little China cups 
and saucers, a sugar bowl and milk cup, and 
a little box of tea, which the old lady in black 
took a key from her pocket and unlocked, 
and, taking from it some tea, put it into a 
small Britannia tea-pot ; and after pouring 
hot water on it from a large copper kettle 
standing near her, poured the carefully 
made tea into cups, which she passed around. 
As I never drink tea, it did not take me long to 
eat my buttered bread. Having no other oc- 
casion for staying at the table longer, I hast- 
ened back to my room to spend this gloomy 
twilight hour in meditating on English board- 



46 LEAFLETS. 

ing-liouses. On reaching my room, and open- 
ing the door, I stepped back in surprise to 
find such a change ! I had only been absent 
a few moments. Had I entered the wrong 
room, or had fairies been at play here, thought 
I '? A nice carpet now covered the floor, 
snowy curtains shaded the window, and the 
toilet and bureau were covered with white 
napkins ; fleecy v/hite curtains now hovered 
over what seemed to me mostly to resemble 
Mont Blanc. What a change had come over 
the spirit of our dreams! At nine in the 
evening, we were again summoned into the 
dining-room to attend prayers and eat supper. 
Mrs. M read a chapter from the Testa- 
ment, and, after many of us had kneeled, we 
tried our best to unite with her as she read 
rapidly a prayer from a book she held in her 
hand. The supper was more abundant than 
our tea at six o'clock. We retired, weary and 
worn, to sleep our first night in London. 



CHAPTER Y. 

BRITISH MUSEUM AND ST. PAUL'S. 

May 18th. 
We indulge a "forlorn hope" this morn- 
ing — notwithstanding it still rains, as we 
are informed it has already rained two 
weeks — that the clearing-oif shower will soon 
come. The world-renowned British Museum 
is not far from where we are sto|)ping, and we 
anticipate it as a glorious retreat for all rainy 
days, provided it does not rain every day for 
two more weeks to come. We were informed 
that the Museum opened at 10 o'clock, and off 
we started in the rain, and soon we found it 
in Great Russell Street. It is an extensive 
building, covering more than seven acres ; the 
ornamental gates and fence which incloses the 
court-yard, also the front porticos, are very 
imposing. We remained there nearly all day, 
and still what a world of wonders, what an 

eternity of curiosities we left without ex- 

4^ 



48 LEAFLETS. 

aminingj and which it were impossible to look 
at in one day. In the first room we entered 
we found only fragments of art, made up 
of armless and legless figures of heathen 
divinities ; headless horses, and eagles with- 
out wings; hands detached from the arm, 
and heads of men, women and children, broken 
off ; broken down altars, crumbling foun- 
tains, richly fluted columns and carved capitals 
of almost every style of architecture. How 
desperately art must have struggled with ruin 
and time to have thus gloriously triumphed 
over mutilation; and after so many years the 
hand of man has placed here such grand frag- 
mentary relics of sculpture and architectural 
decorations, to be admired by thousands. In 
another apartment we spent some time in 
examining manuscripts of great value, and 
autoOTaphs, the sio-ht of which awakened a 

CI 1. J o 

strange veneration toward the soul, that still 
seemed to breathe in the hand-writing of 
Shakespeare, Sir Walter Scott, Mary Queen of 
Scots, Queen Elizabeth, and Lady Jane Gray, 
a brilliant galaxy, formed with the names 
written by their own hands, as if to prove 
they lived, and that the record of their 



BRITISH MUSEUM. 49 

fame is true. Here are names of kings 'and 
queens, philosophers, statesmen, poets, artists, 
and divines. In another room, or compart- 
ment, we saw the marble heads of Julius 
Csesar, Agustus Tiberius and Nero, Minerva, 
and Diana, the sister of Apollo, Venus and 
Juno, also Pericles, Demosthenes, Homer, 
Hippocrates, and scores of others, that were 
sculptured, it is said, in the second century 
after Christ. The Elgin rooms, named after 
Earl Elgin, consist principally of sculpture 
and inscriptions from Athens. The most in- 
teresting series of groups are those taken from 
the eastern and western pediments of the Par- 
thenon, or Temple of Minerva, at Athens. In 
other rooms, minerology, geology and zoology, 
are all extensively represented. The finest 
and best specimens of rare beasts and birds, 
reptiles and fishes that are found, are arranged 
in the wall cases. Every variety of _ shells, 
corals, and insects, fill a series of table-cases 
in the centre of the rooms. Having thus 
caught a glimpse of the wonders deposited 
in this immense building, we will not become 
gloomy, after being thus entertained, even 
on rainy da^ys. 



50 LEAFLETS. 

London^ May \Wi. — We commenced this 
morning in good earnest our chase after the 
'' British Lions." The evening, I assure you, 
finds us quite chased down by them. To-day 
we have seen the Royal Exchange, the Bank 
of England, and St. Paul's ; besides this, for 
some hours we dashed along in a Hansom, (a 
curious vehicle I will some time describe to 
you,) through many of the mighty arteries, 
and some of the smaller veins, of this great 
metropolis of the world. Again, at one time 
we attempted to thread our way on foot along 
the nerves and sinews, when, alas, we found 
ourselves crowded, thronged and pressed for- 
ward by an immense rushing, gushing stream 
of human beings, that come unceasingly — 
pouring down the pavements and side-walks 
of every street, lane and alley. I gazed with 
more awe and wonder on this great multitude, 
which it appeared to me ''no man could num- 
ber," than when I looked for the first time on 
the awful grandeur of Niagara. Some uplift- 
ed imploring eyes and hands to us ; some were 
lounging carelessly and indifferently; some 
plodding along industriously; some seemed to 
be flying, others whirling, all through the 



BRITISH MUSEUM. 51 

short and varying cycles of time, to plunge 
at last into the long, unending, and unknown 
cycles of eternity. 

The P^oyal Exchange may very truthfully 
be called the eye of London; the building is 
quadrangle in form, with a grand colonnade. 
It seemed to m.e one immense modern Babel, 
systematized into perfect harmony. Hundreds 
of foreign merchants gather here, from all 
parts of the earth, to transact business. I 
stood a moment and watched them as they 
were passing in and out, and found it exceed- 
ingly amusing and interesting to study their 
peculiar manners and picturesque costumes. 
The Bank of England is situated on Thread- 
needle Street; it is a superbly constructed 
block of one story buildings, somewhat irregu- 
lar, and covering four acres. The area in 
the centre is beautifully ornamented with 
trees and shrubs ; the arrangement of every 
department of the interior seems perfectly 
ada.pted to facilitate business; eight hundred 
clerks are constantly employed. 

But when we refer you to St. Paul's Cathe- 
dral, we exclaim, in the ardor of our enthu- 
siasm, ''the heavens above for height, and 



52 LEAFLETS. 

the earth beneath for depth." Thus does 
St. Paul's of London excel in grandeur of 
lofty proportions, and beauty of architectural 
design, any thing I have ever seen; I startle 
now when I recall its immensity. What a 
magnificent and gigantic monument i wisely 
designed, and gloriously beautified by man's 
superior genius, and reared by his strong 
arm. 

The exterior is a good deal blackened by 
the smoke of at least two centuries, giving it 
a venerable air as it towers up proudly above 
the loftiest building in London. The mate- 
rial of which it is constructed is the best Port- 
land stone, and decorated with several colos- 
sal figures of the Apostles. The grand entrance 
is reached by twenty -two black marble steps, 
under a double portico, supported by columns 
of the Corinthian and Composite orders, above 
which are the clock and belfry towers, giving 
the entire exterior a most imposing ap- 
pearance. 

I had supposed, by descriptions I have 
read, to find the interior damp and cold, and 
in the last degree dismal — the frescos be- 
grimed with mold, the statuary dingy, and 



BRITISH MUSEUM. 5S 

every thing within far from being attractive. 
Quite to the contrary ; a few years past has 
lent cheerful sunbeams^ which have pierced 
the gloom, removed the mold, and recovered 
the beauty of the marble, and withal diffused, 
a pure atmosphere. In taking a circuit of the 
vast interior, I counted at least fifty elegant 
monuments, nearly every one of them erected 
to military heroes, which, notwithstanding 
their elaborate designs, seemed inappropriate 
to that sacred place. The floors are inlaid in 
squares of black and white marble, the centre 
forming a complete mariner's compass, show- 
ing the thirty-two points ; the central one, a 
large brass plate, from which radiates three 
circles, the largest just the size of the dome. 
As I stood within this circle of circles, my eye 
wandered upward and upward through what 
seemed to me an infinite maze of arches and 
pillars, which encircled the dome, and for a 
moment I was well nigh lost to every thing 
but grandeur. Again, looking below and 
aroiftid me, I became imbued with a strange, 
sweet ecstacy, which made me feel that they 
who worship in this holy and beautiful temple, 
must, in their devotions, be far removed from 



54 LEAFLETS. 

all common-place ideas of this life, to the 
splendors of that eterna.! Temple in the skies 
'' whose builder and maker is God." We as- 
cended six hundred and sixteen steps to reach 
the golden ball, which, from the pavement in 
the street, looks very small ; but on reaching 
it we found it measured six leet in diameter, 
and large enough to hold twelve persons, very 
uncomfortably, however. It weighs five thou- 
sand six hundred pounds. Thirty feet above 
this, heavenward, stands a gilded emblem of 
Christian faith, resting on the ball, with a 
weight of three thousand three hundred and 
sixty pounds. Three of our little company 
only persevered until we reached the ball, 
where we triumphed a few moments together 
in thus being able, with almost exhausted 
physical energies, to join companionship with 
the higher regions — our tired limbs at the 
same time crying out bitterly a^gainst our 
resolute wills, tantalizing us with the truth 
that it was but little, after all, to have it 
said we ha.d entered the ball of St. P^iFs, 
which was only dark, and afforded us no view 
at all. Just below this we looked over the 
parapet down into the streets, which from 



BRITISH MUSEUM. 55 

this giddy height of over three hundred and 
fifty feet resembled narrow pathways sw^arm- 
ing with Liliputian men, women, and children 
busily at work as little bees, depositing treas- 
ures in houses which looked like tiny cells. 
A cloud of smoke, that forever hangs over the 
city like a gloomy pall, prevented our seeing 
far around or above us. If I say more, I fear 
you will imagine that I intend to exhaust all 
my adjectives on one grand pile of stone in 
London ; but the fact is, I have only one no- 
bler, loftier, grander and more sublime ideal 
of stone piled up into the form of a building, 
and that is St. Peter's at Eome, beneath 
" Italia's sunny sky." On our return from 
the ball, we entered the whispering gallery, 
which is worthy of a record — where a word 
spoken in the lowest tones can be heard one 
hundred and forty feet as plainly as if spoken 
close to the ear. The closing of a door sounds 
like the discharge of artillery. The great 
bell, ten feet in diameter, and weighing over 
eleven thousand pounds ; the clock, with its 
two faces, each fifty-seven feet in ciicumfer- 
ence, with hands ten feet long ; the extraor- 
dinary flooring of the library, containing at 

5 



56 LEAFLETS. 

least two thousand three hundred pieces of 
oak, inlaid without a nail ; the seven thousand 
volumes piled on the shelves ; the oldest Com- 
mon Prayer-Book, and scores of olden manii- 
scripts, are all of thrilling interest. Still, I can 
not leave you until we descend into the crypt, 
where the fading wreaths of honor, and men's 
glory, are laintly seen by here and there a ray 
of light from darkened windows, or a few 
flickering lamps. But, oh ! to be buried under 
this grand old dome. What a grave ! Here is 
a sarcophagus of black marble, surmounted by 
a cushion and coronet. On the pedestal is 
this brief inscription, " Horatio Viscount Nel- 
son." Only a few steps from this, under the 
same dome, in stately magnificence, is the 
splendid sarcophagus of the ^' Iron Duke," 
whose proud coffin bears the following pomp- 
ous inscription : 

•• The Mof^t High, Mighty and Most Noble Prince Arthur. Duke 
and Marquis of Wellington, Marquis of Druro, Earl of Wellington, 
Viscount WelUngton of Talavera and of Wellington, and Baron 
Druro of Welleslej. Knight of the Most Noble Order of the Garter. 
Knight Grand Cross of the Most Honorable Order of the Bath, one 
of Her Majestj-'s }.lost Honorable Privy Council, and Field Marshal 
and Commander-in-Chief of Her Majesty's Forces, born 1st of May, 
1769; died Uth September, 1852." 

At the present day, England is wont to 



BRITISH MUSEUM. , 57 

speak of the power, influence and glory of the 
great Duke of Wellington, as the highest ever 
reached by mortal man — eclipsing Csesar, and 
all of Roman fame. His dust reposes within 
four coffins, inclosed in a splendid sarcopha- 
gus, the inner one made of pine, by the Duke's 
own carpenter ; the next of lead, twice the 
usual thickness ; the third of English oak ; 
the outer one of solid mahogany, covered 
with crimson velvet, from Genoa, decorated 
with silver devices, significant of his ducal 
honors. Thus, side by side, sleep in death, 
two heroes, under a grand and lofty dome, 
towering up toward heaven — the bravest and 
greatest field and naval officers of which Eng- 
land is proud to boast ! 



CHAPTER YI. 

FIRST SABBATH IN LON DON — WESLEY 'S GRAVE— WEST- 

MINSTER ABBEY. 

May 20!h. 
Our first Sabbath morning in London 
found us in Exeter Hall, by paying one shil- 
ling each (equal to twenty-five cents Amer- 
ican money). We were admitted through 
a private entrance, and in this way secured 
good seats. When all the doors were open the 
hundreds that were in waiting rushed in, un- 
til the immense Hall was crowded with at 
least three or four thousand people, and a 
perfect sea of upturned faces greeted Mr. 
Spurgeon as4ie made his appearance on the 
stage, which served as a pulpit, and com- 
menced service by reading a hymn with very 
fine effect ; the whole congregation arose and 
united in the singing. He then read and ex- 
plained a chapter in the Bible, after which 
he prayed fervently, and preached from these 
words : '^ For Thou hast cast all my sins be- 



FIRST SABBATH TN LONDON. 59 

hind my back." The sermon glowed with 
zeal, energy and spiritual life. His voice is 
as clear as the lute of an angel, and the en- 
gravings we see of him give us a very correct 
idea of his personal appearance. In St. 
James' Hail, at six o'clock P.M., we listened 
to the celebrated VVesleyan Methodist preach- 
er, Mr. Punshon. The hall is large, and it 
was crowded to overflowing. When the con- 
gregation arose and commenced singing 
'' Jesus, lover of my soul," a sweet home-feel- 
ing thrilled my spirit, kindling anew the 
spiritual fire on the altar of my heart, prov- 
ing that the hallowed influence of devotion 
is the same the world over. 

Mr. Punshon differs decidedly in personal 
appearance from Mr. Spurgeon. The3^ are 
both pure and genuine Englishmen ; but Pun- 
shon's voice is neither clear nor musical ; still, 
he excels Spurgeon in eloquence and style of 
oratory. They are both in the prime and 
vigor of manhood ; and, thus far, their brilliant 
career has seldom, if ever, been equaled in 
Great Britain. They are both gifted with a 
kind of magnetic power, which attracts or 

draws the multitude after them. Wherein 

5^' 



60 LEAFLETS. 

their great strength lies I could not exactly 
divine. I imagine not so much in what they 
say, as how they say it. 

How I wish you could have been with 
me to-day, as we stood by the grave of the 
eminent John Wesley. He is buried in the 
rear of the edifice known as City Road 
Chapel. On the 1st of April, 1777, he laid 
the corner-stone of this grand old cathedral 
of Methodism. His name, and the date, were 
engraved on a brass plate inserted in the 
stone, and on that occasion he said, '^ Proba- 
bly this will be seen no more by human eye, 
but Avill remain there till the earth, and the 
works thereof, are burnt up." It is a well- 
constructed building, showing, as yet, no signs 
of decay ; and if it is guarded in future as it 
has been in the past, by the devoted followers 
of this Apostle of Methodism, it may not 
crumble into ruins before the great '' war of 
elements, the wreck of matter and the crash 
of worlds." A chaste and appropriate monu- 
ment has, within a few years, been erected 
over the spot where he quietly and peacefully 
sleeps, on the front of which is the following 
inscription : 



GRAVE OF WESLEY. 61 

THIS GRATEFUL RECORD 

OF THE PLACE MADE SACRED BY THE 

MORTAL REMAINS 

OF THE VENERABLE AND APOSTOLIC 

WESLEY, 

Was first erected A. D. MDGCCI 

But re-edified and enlarged A. D. MDCCCXL 

(During the Centenary of Methodism), 

At the expense, and under direction of 

HIS SONS AND SUCCESSORS IN THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY. 

THE METHODIST CONFERENCE, 

IN TOKEN OF 

Their filial admiration, reverence and love, 

TO THE MEMORY OF 

THE VENERABLE JOHN WESLEY, A.M., 

LATE FELLOW OF LINCOLN COLLEGE, OXFORD. 

This great Light arose, 
(By the singular providence of God), 

TO ENLIGHTEN THESE NATIONS, 

And to revive, enforce and defend 

THE PURE APOSTOLIC DOCTRINES AND >RACriCES OF 

THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH, 

Which he continued to do both by his v^ritings and labours 

FOR MORE THAN HALF A CENTURY ; 

And. to his inexpressible joy, 

Not only beheld their influence extending, 

And their efficacy witnessed, 

I:n the Hearts and Lives of Many Thousands, 

As well in the Western world as in these Kingdoms. 

But, also, fir above all human power or expectation. 

Lived to see provision made by the singular Grace of God, 

For their continual nee and establishment 

TO the JOY" OF future GENERATIONS. 

Reader, if thou art constrained to bless the instrument. 

GIVE GOD THE GLORY. 

After having languished a few days, he at length finished his course 

and life together ! gloriously triumphant over Death. 

and died March 2d, 1791, in the eighty- 

eighth year of his age. 



62 LEAFLETS. 

Such a record must strike every one as an 
impressive and truthful epitome of his long 
course of devotedness to God and the Church, 
and of the triumphant closing scenes of his 
life. To stand by the grave of one hallowed 
in memory from the earliest dawn of my 
recollections, was indeed a sacred pleasure. 
The next grave, by his side, is that of x\dam 
Clarke, the greatest of Bible commentators, 
and on the tablet erected to his memory is 
this brief inscription : 

SACRED 

TO THE MEMORY OF 

ADAM CLARKE, LL.D., F. S. A., 

Who rested from his labors. 

Azigust 2Qih, 1832. 

AGED 7 2 Y E A R 8 . 

Thus in holy, as well as loving fraternity, 
repose these two great and eminently good 
men of God — who, during their lives tuned 
harps we but faintly touch ; but who, no doubt, 
are now striking harps of gold, in the most 
exalting strains of harmony and love, around 
the throne of God in heaven. In the same 
grounds we also stood beside the grave of 
Joseph Benson and Robert Watson, and. from 



GRAVE OF WESLEY. 6 



o 



each I plucked some leaves and grasses, as 
mementoes. We were kindly invited to take 
tea with the liev. Mr. Wilson and lady, alter 
which J in the evening, we attended a mission- 
ary anniversary at the City Road Chapel, 
where we saw the Wesleyan ministry well 
represented, on a stage erected for the occa- 
sion. The Rev. Mr. Waddy, the president of 
the Wesleyan Conference, presided, and com- 
menced the exercises with a charming little 
speech. Mr. Pmishon was evidently antici- 
pated to be the lion of the evening, for as he 
entered whilst another was speaking, the au- 
dience began to cheer vehemently ; the speak- 
er inferred that the applause was intended for 
himself, and seemed to catch fresh inspiration, 
which all must have observed was very 

much dampened when he saw Mr. P 

take a seat on the stand near him. It soon, 
however, became his turn to speak, when the 
audience regaled him with a shower of '^ hear ! 
hear! hear!" the English manner of applaud- 
ing, and which he repaid by a splendid 
effort, sparkling with the true genius of the 
man. 

A few moments' walk brought us standing 



64 LEAFLETS. 

before Westminster Abbey, gazing intently 
upon its gorgeous exterior, which we found 
turretedj arched, fretted, spired and pinna- 
cled, until the vast whole seemed like an 
elegant piece of rich embroidery, interwoven 
into fine meshes of lace-work by the fingers 
of angels, so aerial, delicate and fairy-like, 
yet vast and grand, in all its lotty propor- 
tions. It is soiled and blackened by the 
dust of hundreds of years, seeming only 
to prove the genuineness of the endless com- 
bination of beauty and grace that every- 
where adorn its Gothic sides. We were about 
to enter, but were informed that the fune- 
ral of Sir Charles Barry, the celebrated 
architect, was to take place in about an 
hour, and. no one could be allowed to enter 
until the procession had arrived, and already 
the crowd was gathering thickly at each en- 
trance. From our position we had a fine 
view of the new Houses oi" Parliament, ex- 
tending exactly opposite to us, producing a 
striking contrast, in all the freshness of their 
^'latter day glory," to the Ijegrimed palace of 
tombs, loaded with the weight of centuries, 
against which we were leaning. The style in 



WESTMINSTER ABBEY. 65 

which these hou^^es are built is difficult, il not 
impossible, to describe, or to characterize by 
a generic name ; some say it is Tudor, or very 
nearly approaching it, while others call it 
Gothic. It is very evident that the architect 
intended to avoid ecclesiastical, collegiate 
and castellated styles, as entirely inappropri- 
ate to such buildings. It is said Sir Charles 
Barry, the architect, called the style Palatial — 
he whose funeral procession we were expect- 
hig soon to see pass mournfully under the 
very shadow of this wonderful monument of 
his genius. The clock, and Victoria towers, 
are both over three hundred feet high, the 
central dome is nearly the same height. The 
front of the building facing the Thames is one 
thousand feet in length, in the centre of it is 
the river terrace, which is seven hundred feet 
in extent, from which is gained one of the finest 
views in London. This magnificent fagade is 
divided into five compartments, paneled with 
tracery, and decorated with the statues and 
shields of England's kings and queens. In de- 
sign and beauty of decoration in the entire ex- 
terior, I think I nev^er saw greater harmony. 
At the time appointed for the funeral the 



66 LEAFLETS. 

vast crowd began to separate to the right and 
the left ; and first passed the hearse, rich in 
its heavy black, drawn by splendid horses, 
who curved their slender, graceful necks be- 
neath the mourning drapery, hanging to 
the ground, followed by fifty elegant car- 
riages, and hundreds of intelligent looking 
men, who passed, two by two, with badges of 
crape on the arm. They were members of 
his great family of architects, at whose head 
he had stood first for so many years. We ap- 
preciated this unexpected privilege to attend 
the funeral of such a great man, one exalted 
in the hearts and homes of the nation, and 
then to see his new-made grave beside those 
who have been slumbering for hundreds of 
years in this olden earth, and sheltered so 
long by such architectural beauty and gran- 
deur. The whole ceremony was brief and 
thrillingly impressive. The crowd soon passed 
hither and thither, and we were left nearlv 
alone with our guide, to wander in this solemn 
temple, which appeared next in vastness to the 
grand universe itself, hung in funeral drapery, 
and carved with the inscriptions of man's 
glory. Here, for ages, the honorable and am- 



WESTMINSTER ABBEY. 67 

bitious have sought, and even coveted, a 
proud mausoleum. Nelson, on the eve of one 
of his most important naval engagements, 
gave out as the rallying watch-word and 
motto, " Victory or Westminster Abbey." 
Hours passed beneath groined and traceried 
roofs, and sculptured arcades, the sides filled 
in with exquisitely decorated niches. 

What a vast and crowded cemetery! What 
a perfect wilderness of inscriptions ! What a 
gallery of art ! To tell you of half the mon- 
uments on which are inscribed familiar names 
must reduce your stock of patience before 
the record is half read. I acknowledge my- 
self somewhat bewildered, and consider the 
effusion of Pope exceedingly appropriate, 
and no less truthful: 

" Friend for j'our epitaphs I grieved, 
Where still so much is said ; 
One half will never be believed, 
The other^ever read." 

The grand nave, transepts, choir, chapels, 
cloisters, and monuments, with their inscrip- 
tions, are all replete with interest. The 
monument, which among them all, leaves its 

impression uneffaced, that I considered in 

6 



68 LEAF LETS. 

every way worthy of so mighty a man, was 
the one erected to the memory of Isaac New- 
ton. The figure is recumbent, leaning his 
right arm on four titled folios: Divinity, 
Chronology, Optics, and Phil. Prin. Math.; 
and pointing to a scroll supported by winged 
cherubs. Over him is a large globe, project- 
ing from a pyramid behind, whereon is delin- 
eated the course of the comet in 1680, with 
the signs, constellations, and planets. On 
this sits the figure of Astronomy, with her 
book closed. Underneath, the principal fig- 
ure is a most singular bas-relief, represent- 
ing the various labors in which Sir Isaac 
chiefly employed his time : such as discover- 
ing the cause of gravitation, settling the prin- 
ciples of light and colors, and reducing the 
coinage to a determined standard. The de- 
vice of weighing the sun by the steelyard has 
been thought at once bold and striking, while 
the entire design of the monument does honor 
to the sculptor. The inscription on the ped- 
estal is in Latin, short, but full of meaning, 
w^hich intimates that by a spirit, nearly divine, 
he solved, on principles of his own, the mo- 
tions and figures of the planets, the paths of 



WESTMINSTER ABBEY. 69 

the comets, and the ebbing and flowing of the 
tides. He also discovered the dissimilarity of 
the rays of light, and the properties of colors 
from them arising, which none but himself 
had ever thought of; that he was diligent, 
wise, and faithful as an interpreter of nature, 
antiquity, and the Holy Scriptures; by his 
philosophy he maintained the dignity of the 
Supreme Being, and by the purity of his lifCj 
the simplicity of the Gospel. The inscription 
concludes with a beautiful exclamation, " How 
much reason mortals have to pride themselves 
in the existence of such a great man, an orna- 
ment to the human race." He w^as born De- 
cember 25th, 1642, and died March 20th, 
1726. The time was fast approaching for us 
to leave, when we paused several moments 
in the chapel, to unite with those who 
gather there for vespers. The quiet that 
prevailed made the stillness painful, and 
the few voices sounded sepulchral. The last 
spot at which we lingered was the Poets' Cor- 
ner, where names, as iamiliar as household 
words, greeted us, the fragrance of whose 
memory perfumed the very air with the 
breath of poetry, music, genius, and high- 



70 LEAFLETS. 

born gifts. Milton, Gray, Shakespeare, Gold- 
smith, Handel, Addison, Ben Jonson, Thom- 
son, and scores of others, completing a 
luminous galaxy. 

" These by Heaven, and not a master, taught, 
Whose art was Nature, and ^Yhose pictures thought." 

Now, glancing a farewell through this 
monumental palace — where all day long we 
had been patrons of dead merit — we listened 
if we might catch the p^an note as it echoed, 
along the dusty highway of the past, answer- 
ing back' in these gloomy aisles. The magic 
presence of buried greatness seemed to en- 
shrine itself within the depths of my inner 
life, and there haunt me with eager aspira- 
tions and lofty longings, as represented in the 
well remembered lines of Longfellow : 

*' Lives of great men all remind us 
We may make our lives sublime ; 
And departing, leave behind us 
Footprints on the sand of time." 



CHAPTER VII. 

THE PARKS AND TOWER OF LONDON. 

May 23(/. 
To-day we have been breathing through 
the great langs of London — Hyde Park, 
Regent's Park and St. James' Park — which 
have afforded us a charming opportunity to 
see the ''dash and splash" of London life. 
Oh ! the glitter and dazzle of livery, and the 
rosy hue and smiling freshness of English 
beauty, crowded out of the palpitating heart 
of the overflowing city, to swell and expand 
into vigorous life. ^ In these refreshing open- 
ings, the pure breath of heaven freety fans, 
with its cooling zephyrs, alike the brow of toil 
and of luxury. Hyde Park is less artificial, 
and more rural than all the others. The ven- 
erable trees of many winds and winters cast 
their thick, heavy shadows along the pathway 
of honest industry. On an abundance of 

green grass, which forms a velvet-like carpet, 

6* 



72 LEAFLETS. 

hundreds of children come out every day to 
hop and skip, and dance and romp, and play, 
and tumble head over heels, as freely and un- 
restrained as the air they breathe. The aris- 
tocracy of London monopolize the carriage- 
course to display costlj^ equipages, prancing 
steeds, and rich, gorgeous apparel. The co- 
lossal statue of Achilles, erected by the ladies 
as a memorial to the ''Iron Duke," at a cost of 
ten thousand pounds, and cast from a dozen 
twenty-four pounders, weighing more than 
twenty tons, adds a great deal of interest to 
the Park, In Regent's Park, the Zoological 
Gardens are the centre of attraction, which are 
filled with ''all manner of four-footed beasts, 
and creeping things, and fowls of the air," from 
the tiny insect to the elephant and huge rhi- 
noceros. In the Botanical Gardens, native 
loveliness mingles her perfumes with those of 
rich exotics, and the skillful hand of science, 
day by day, is scattering those leaves for the 
''healing of the nations." 

St. James' Park is most exquisitely adorned 
with much of natural and artificial loveliness. 
Oh ! how I loved that little lake, where the 
snowy swans were reposing in such graceful 



PARKS OF LONDON. 73 

attitudes ! and I am sure of pardon if I say 
my fond heart still clings to that little gem 
of an isle, a jewel in the centre of the lake, 
with its rustic cot so lovingly peeping from 
beneath the leaves and shrubber}^ — a fitting 
nook for water-nymphs to tv/ine wreaths for 
fairies, and dream and revel there continually. 
As we were leisurely walking around, I was 
tempted just to take one leaf to carry home 
as a souvenir, and, reaching up my hand to 
pluck, not the forbidden fruit, but one single 
leaf from a tree, the branches of wdiich were 
hanging over my head, at the same instant I 
heard a voice from behind me saying, " Com- 
mit no depredations on these grounds !" My 
hand dropped, as if instant!}^ palsied. I 
turned around to acknowledge, and surrender 
myself a prisoner, expecting to encounter the 
stern and dignified air of one of Her Most 
Gracious Majesty\s ^'blue-coats and bright 
buttons" (a policeman) ; but to my agreeable 
surprise, I will assure you, there stood Mr. 

and Mrs. T , who crossed the ocean with 

us ; their presence, aside from quieting my 
fears, was as refreshing as the dew of a sum- 
mer evening, they seemed to us like old 



74 LEAFLETS. 

friends, and together we walked and talked 
of our dear homes, and the precious heart- 
jewels, far away over the sea, until the bell 
rang for us to leave the Park. 

It was quite early in the morning when 
we found ourselves dashing down the streets 
of London in a Hanson, the vehicle I prom- 
ised to describe to you : It is drawn by 
one horse, with a high dash in the front of 
the carriage to prevent accident from the 
horse's heels. Only two persons can be ac- 
commodated in the interior, which is en- 
tered m front of the v/heels, almost to the 
ground. As we enter, the driver folds to- 
gether two wooden doors on their hinges, and, 
after we take our seats, they are closed snug- 
ly over us, with only our head and arms above 
them. The top surmounts the two wheels, at 
the back of which the driver sits, perched up 
high in a little box-like seat, the reins ex- 
tending over the projecting cover of the car- 
riage. On the whole, they are a great novelty 
to Americans. As we rode along this morn- 
ing, the immense sea of human beings con- 
stantly ebbing and flowing through the great 
thoroughfares of the city — the world of om- 



PARKS OF LONDON. 75 

nibusses, dravs, carts, cabs and carriages — the 
streets and alleys — the shops and stores, 
dwellings and public buildings, are all begin- 
ning to look so familiar to me that I can 
hardly imagine I have been here so short a 
time. At length we reached the famous Old 
Tower of London, at the entrance of which 
we were shown a small room, where we were 
to obtain our tickets, and wait until a party of 
eight or ten had gathered to accompany us. 
The space inclosing the Tower is surrounded 
by walls, with a moat or ditch, which is 
spanned at each entrance by a bridge, and 
within this inclosure there is quite a little 
town, covering nearly twelve acres, con- 
taining several hundred inhabitants. The main 
structure, or Tov/er, is square, surmounted at 
its four corners with turrets. Our escort was 
one of the yeomen of the guard, dressed in the 
gay livery of the times oF Henry the Eighth : 
a hat of black velvet, trimmed with narrow rib- 
bons of red and white. We first passed a chain 
of small towers, where sentinels were perambu- 
lating slowlj^ to and fro on duty. The next 
moment the old Tower stood up before us 
like a grrim witness of an ao;e of crime and 

c5 O 



To LEAFLETS. 

blood. In vain I attempted to suppress the 
chill which came, with the recollection oi" the 
stories of my childhood, wrought in fearful 
and horrible pictures of the murders, execu- 
tions and imprisonments in this Tower, while 
the roll of years had faded, but not effaced, 
their crimson coloring; but, as we were lean- 
ing against those hoary walls, and looking 
down from the glorious pinnacle of England's 
present prosperity and pride, into the dark 
shadows that fail upon this gloomy fabric, in 
its past history, we rejoiced in the change. 
Now justice, liberty, intelligence and religious 
refinement, with the radiance of their many 
suns, dispel the darkness and terrors of the 
terrific night of " Iron Rule.'' 

The exterior is less gloomy than I had an- 
ticipated, and appeared to me only as a grand 
memento of past conflicts and storms. We 
proceeded to the entrance, which opens into 
a long apartment, filled on both sides with 
equestrian figures of life-size, and clad in full 
armor of various periods, mounted On wooden 
horses, elegantly caparisoned. Our warden, 
with ludicrous importance, began very cere- 
moniously to introduce us to each of these 



PARKS OF LONDON. 77 

kingly equestrians. All in the party seemed 
struck with the appearance of the one repre- 
senting Edward the First, the ef^gy being 
covered with chain-mail, ingeniously con- 
structed of a number of little rings, which in- 
terlace each other, forming a connected gar- 
ment or net-work of steel. We soon wearied 
in trying to closely examine half of them ; but 
as we gave a passing look, our yeoman con- 
tinued to call out the names of this august 
senate, repeating a well -learned yarn of their 
history and glory, in elaborate sentences, and 
would-be scientific tones. Nearly all the 
party had preceded him, and were spying out 
every corner, and closely examining the mili- 
tary trophies and emblems that everywhere 
adorn the ceilings, arranged in forms of suns, 
crescents, and stars, glittering brightly with 
guns, swords, lances, and spears, which also 
cover, in curious devices, the pillars and 
arches. We were shown an Irish weapon 
called a spath, found near the Giant's Cause- 
way, and the British battle-axe, found in the 
river Thames. Other cases were filled with 
lances, helmets, curious daggers and powder- 
horns, and thousands of warlike implements. 



78 LEAFLETS. 

We were almost lost in the perfect wilderness 
of arms. When some of our partj^ had 
reached the further end of the room, our yeo- 
man suddenly became aware that he had an 
audience of only two or three, and was in 
great danger of expending his flow of elo- 
quence on the silent and motionless audience 
of equestrians. He stopped for a moment his 
studied tones, and screamed out at the top of 
his voice, '' Stop there, I say." Finding it im- 
possible to recall them, he hastened on to lead 
the way to the apartments know^n as Queen 
Elizabeth's armory, calling our attention, as 
we passed up the stairs, to the immense thick- 
ness of the walls, careful at the same time to 
impress us with the fact that we were not al- 
lowed to precede him. At the extreme end 
of this room is a figuie of the proud queen, 
mounted on a splendidly carved horse, and at- 
tired in a dress, said to have been w^orn 
by her when living, which is gorgeously mag- 
nificent. Her page, a pretty little lad, stands 
by her side, and is in the act of holding her 
horse by the bridle. ¥/e now passed through 
rooms and prisons replete with the mem.ories 
of gloomy and fearful events. I trembled as 



TOWER OF LONDON. 79 

I looked at the identical block, and, with eyes 
dimmed with tears, examined the marks made 
by the ax which severed the head from 
the body of the beautiful Anne Boleyn, 
who, a few hours before her execution, 
placed her delicate hands around her neck, 
consoling herself with the idea that it was 
so slender that one stroke would sever it. 
This is the same block which was used 
when Lady Jane Gray was beheaded. How 
it made the blood rush to my brain as 
I recalled her transparent innocency, and 
wondered for a moment why a just God 
did not interfere in vengeance. As we 
continued our tour, we recalled the periods 
when, according to history, this citadel was 
an impregnable fertress, defying the assaults 
of foreign foes; then changed into a palace, 
which witnessed the magnificent festivities 
of royalty, among which were the brilliant 
tournaments of Henry the Seventh's day, and 
the joyful, but short-lived, entertainments of 
the infamous Henry the Eighth, that were 
enacted here during the early part of his 
reign. 

Passing from the Tower into the open 

7 



80 LEAFLETS. 

eourt-yard, we stood upon the very spot where 
the block was placed at the time of executions. 
With what distinctness the last words uttered 
by the lovely Anne Boleyn came from the 
past to me, ''0 Father! Father! Thou art 
the truth, and the life, Thou knowest I have 
not deserved this death!" She was born in 
England, in 1507, but at an early age removed 
to France, and was there connected with the 
French Court, where her beauty and accom- 
plishments rendered her very attractive. She 
returned to England in 1526, and became 
muid of honor to Katharine of Aragon, the 
first wife of Henry the Eighth, of England ; the 
King fell deeply in love with her, aiid man- 
aged to annul his marriage with Katharine, 
marrying Anne on the 14th of November, 
1532. But, alas! three short years closed up 
her queenly career, for the charms of one of 
her maids of honor in turn alienated the af- 
fections of the King. But hers was a more 
terrible fate. Accused of high treason, she 
was condemned and committed to this Tower, 
from which she was soon after led to the 
block standing on this spot, where she 
prayed for the King, infamous as he was, say- 



TOWER OP LONDON. 81 

ing ''he had raised her to the highest dignity 
of this world, and then he was sending her 
to be a saint in heaven." Still attesting her 
innocence in the thrilling words I have writ- 
ten, and hoping for no redress, she calmly 
submitted to her fate. But a voice still more 
lovely sounds on my ears, as I linger on this 
spot ; it is the voice of Lady Jane Gray, as she 
kneels on the scaffold, and offers up this 
brief prayer; ''Lord, into Thy hands I com- 
mend my spirit," then meekly bowed to meet 
her death. The memories of her virtues 
have ever excited admiration, and her end 
the deepest sympathy. She was born at 
Bradgate, in Leicestershire, in 1537, inherit- 
ing royal blood by both her parents. She 
was thoroughly educated and accomplished. 
When a mere child, she could write and 
speak French, Italian, Latin, and Greek with 
great fluency; she was also endowed with 
a rare talent for music, which was cultivated 
with care. She m^arried Lord Gifford Dud- 
ley, and through the misconcerted plans of 
her father-in-law, she was induced, contrary 
to her own wishes, to ascend the throne of 
England, as successor of Edward the Sixth. 



82 LEAFLETS. 

The crown would have been rightfully hers, 
had not Henry the Eighth, in his will, re- 
voked the decree that had annulled the mar- 
riages of the mothers of the Princesses Mary 
and Elizabeth. The royal diadem pressed 
her fair brow only nine days, when the 
nation declared Mary Queen, who was the 
eldest daughter of Henry the Eighth. Lady 
Jane and her youthful husband were imme- 
diately committed to the Tower, and on the 
walls of her prison she wrote these lines, 
which are still visible : 

"Harmless all malice, if our God is nigh ; 
Fruitless all pains, if He His help deny ; 
Patient I pass these gloomy hours away. 
And wait the morning of eternal day." 

She saw her husband led to the execution, 
and soon after followed him, without breath- 
ing a complaint of the unjustness of her pun- 
ishment, or its severity, subjecting her to such 
a cruel fate at the early age of seventeen. 
Passing from this, we inquired for the chamber 
in which the two princes were smothered, a 
sacrifice to the murderous ambition of Richard 
the Third, and the place where bloody Mary 
afterward held her Court. It must have been a 



TOWER OF LONDON. 83 

strange power, thought I, that changed this 
Tower from a fortress to a palace, and from 
a palace to a prison ! But happier and bright- 
er years have at last let fall a curtain over 
such tragic and mournful scenes, which, God 
grant, may never rise again. We have now 
only to visit the Jewel Room, which we can- 
not leave without seeing. In this apartment 
the crowns and sceptres of England's kings 
and queens are kept, which we found lying 
on a stand, inclosed in an immense iron 
cage, where we could look at, but not touch 
them. Here is the crown which was worn 
by Victoria, at her coronation, and is always 
carried on a cushion before her when she 
goes to open Parliament, and on other State^ 
days. It is a cap of royal purple velvet in- 
closed in hoops of silver, surmounted by a 
ball and cross, and resplendent with diamonds. 
In the centre of the cross is a costly sapphire, 
and on the front of the crown is a heart- 
shaped ruby, said to have been worn by the 
Black Prince. Here is also the Prince of 
Wales' crown, of pure gold, thickly studded 
with the rarest jewels. Among these royal 

ornaments, is the pointless sword of Mercy; 

7- 



84 LEAFLETS. 

the two swords of Justice, of solid gold ; 
the Queen's golden sceptre; the vessels used 
at the coronation ; the baptismal fount, from 
which the rojed children are christened, to- 
gether with the magnificent sacramental ser- 
vice. 



CHAPTER YIII. 

ACADEMY OF ARTS— MADAME TUSSAUD'S GALLERY- 
CITY ROAD CHAPEL — ST. PAUL'S. 

May '24:th 
I HAVE spent nearly all day in the Royal 
Academy of Arts, situated on Trafalgar 
Square, and in the east wing of the National 
Gallery. It is a school, or academy of design, 
for the special use of students in the fine arts, 
whose works are presented annually to the 
public on exhibition. I had spent a day in 
these rooms once before, but on leaving them 
felt that I was just commencing to appreciate 
these superb works of modern artists. Pass- 
ing through the rooms filled with statuary, 
^'Melancholy" and "Mirth," represented by 
two female figures, arrested my attention as 
being very beautiful ; one a pensive nun, 
devout, sober, steadfast, and demure, very 
strikingly contrasts with the gay creature 
^' Mirth," who seems to say, 

" Come a ad trip it as we go, 
On the light fantastic toe." 



S6 LEAFLETS. 

" Jephthah and his Daughter" pleased me 
much ; the father's attitude is that of a brave, 
stern warrior ; the gentle maiden leans grace- 
fully and confidingly on his shoulder. One is 
almost ready to go off in an ecstacy of delight 
looking at a chubby baby just taken from its 
bath; its little dimpled form, of perfect sym- 
metry, appears to press into the marble as if 
it were a downy pillow, and the little rogue 
uplifts in one hand a white lilly, which it has 
brought from the bath with so much of baby 
triumph ; I can hardly imagine this sculp- 
ture to be excelled in truthfulness and beauty. 
^'Piacere e dolore," "Swift and Slow Hours," 
the figure which represents Swift Hours seems 
ethereal, the hair long and flowing as if blown 
by an invisible breath, and her garments 
gracefully loose, with a vail of vapory texture 
thrown over her, without concealing the fea- 
tures, producing an extraordinary efi'ect; and, 
with outstretched arms, she seems to glide 
into time's rushing current. '' Slow Hours " is 
represented by a luxuriant being, fallen asleep 
in a bed of roses. Oh! how sweetly, slowly, 
and silently glide the moments by. Nidia. — 
One standing by the side of this piece of mar- 



ACADEMY OF ARTS. 87 

ble, listens, expecting to hear the blind 
flower girl of Pompeii say, "buy my flowers, 
buy!" "Maidenhood" is a fine figure, such 
as represented by Longfellow, in the following 
lines: 

" standing with reluctant feet, 
Where tlie brook and river meet, 
Womanhood and cbildhood fleet ! 
Gazing with a timid glance, 
On the brooklet's swift advance, 
On the river's broad expanse 1 " 

In all, there are one hundred and fifty 
pieces of statuary, each interesting in design, 
and well executed. 

The Picture Gallery, which I next passed 
to examine, does honor to English artists. 
The picture representing St. John- leading 
home his adopted mother, painted by W. Byce, 
seems, at one look, to tell the whole Storv of 
the Cross, and of our buried Lord. John and 
Mary are coming in the fore-ground from the 
sepulchre ; one of Mary's hands is laid gently 
in that of John's, and in the other she holds 
the crown of thorns our Saviour wore, at 
which she gazes sadly and mournfully; John 
is looking at her with loving pity, as if the com- 
mission given by Jesus, a few hours since, was 



S8 LEAFLETS. 

revolving in his mind, for when expiring on 
the croKSS, ''Jesus said to the disciple stand- 
ing by, whom He loved, behold thy mother ! 
and from that time that disciple took her to 
his home." Other of his followers are coming 
from the tomb, which is in the back-gromid, 
where the two Marys still linger, while the 
clouds, ominous of impending doom, hang 
over the city. Here, also, 1 saw an excellent 
picture of Wesley, the last century's great 
revivalist, preaching at Epworth Church, Lin- 
conshire. It is painted by Brownlow, from 
the scenes in John Wesley's Journal, June 6th, 
1742, who said, "I stood near the east end of 
the Church, upon my father's tomb-stone, and 
cried, ' The kingdom of heaven is not meat 
and drink, but righteousness, and peace, and 
joy in the Holy Ghost.' " It is represented so 
life-like, one can almost imagine they are 
in the throng that crowd around him, listen- 
ino; to the burnino; words that fell from his 
lips, touched with hallowed fire. The hour 
of closing canie, and I was obliged to leave 
this interesting place, where I might have 
spent hours longer, and even days, pleasantly. 
Having heard much of Madame Tussaud's 



ACADEMY OF ARTS. 89 

Gallery of Wax Figures, admitted by all to 
combine good taste and genius in their life- 
like representations, we entered one lovely 
evening — they appearing to better advantage 
by gas-light — and it seemed like suddenly be- 
ing ushered into the presence of the living 
forms of the renowned of earth. 

In a small room adjoining the one we en- 
tered is a shrine in honor of the illustrious 
Duke of Wellington, whose waxen figure is 
reposing on his tent-couch, under a gorgeous 
canopy of velvet, and cloth of gold. His 
mantle of the Order of the Garter, so nobly 
worn, is thrown over him, displaying its rich 
folds, and surrounding him are the emblems 
of dignity and greatness, rendering it a 
magnificent memorial. We next visited a 
large room, which was perfectly thronged 
with the illustrious of different periods and 
countries. The groups in the centre of this 
room represent the Courts of England and 
France, in full state dress, being a grand per- 
sonification of royally. So graceful and easy 
are the attitudes of these figures, whether 
sitting, standing or reclining, one can hardly 
imagine that their smiles and pretty dimples, 



90 LEAFLETS. 

and perfectly-moulded forms, are not real. 
Madame St. Amaranthe, said to have been 
the most beautiful woman in France, who was 
hurried into eternity in the attack made on 
the Tuilleries, August 10th, 1792, by Robes- 
pierre, during the Heign of Terror, is repre- 
sented reposing in full dress, having fallen 
asleep with one arm under her head, and, by 
some ingenious mechanism, her figure is made 
to breathe — 

"The very life seems warm upon her lips; 
The fixture of her eye has motiou in't! " 

As we were admiring this beautiful wo- 
man in wax, we observed an old lady 
sitting in a chair near us, dressed in black, 
looking through a pair of gold spectacles, and 
holding in her hand a snuff-box, which was 
open, as if she was just in the act of taking 
a pinch. One of our company, who had de- 
tected this splendid fraud, wishing to see how 
far it could be practiced on others, spoke in 
a low tone to me, to take care and not allow 
that old woman to soil my dress with her 
snuff. I thanked him, and quietly stepped 
aside. But I was never so completely and 



ACADEMY OF ARTS. 91 

thoroughly sold as when I ascertained that 
this old woman was also wax, and the cata- 
logue in my hand introduced her as Madame 
Tussaud, the prim lady of the establishment. 
In a moment or two, as we had advanced a 
few steps, it fortunately became my turn to 
discover a perfect deception, when I said to 
the gentleman " Do you recognize that old 
man yonder who is bowing to you?" He 
turned quickly and politely returned the bow, 
when, to his surprise, and greatly to my 
amusement, he saw that the venerable old 
man with broad-brim hat, in bowing, was 
doing the honors of this silent group, and not 
by his own volition. 

The little catalogue we had purchased at 
the door as we proceeded, made us acquainted, 
by name and person, with kings and queens, 
lords and ladies, princes and princesses, dukes 
and duchesses, peers and peeresses, marquis 
and marchioness, generals, reformers, divines, 
philosophers, poets and artists, in all two hun- 
dred figures, as large as life, and in full dress, 
representing the most brilliant personages 
that have adorned the annals of any age. 1 

fancied T had seen John Knox and Mar- 

8 



92 LEAFLETS.' 

tin Luther, and John Calvin, their personal 
appearance and expression seemed so truth- 
fully the index of their characters ; but I was 
not so well pleased with the figure represent- 
ing John Wesley. Reaching the centre of 
the room we came into the presence of Henry 
the Eighth, dressed in a magnificent suit of 
armor. His little son, afterward Edward the 
Sixth, was standing near him ; also his two 
daughters, Mary and Elizabeth, who, after 
their brother's death, in turn both became 
queens. Standing around the King, are his 
six wives, clad in queenly robes : Catherine 
of Aragon, the mother of Queen Mary ; Anne 
Boleyn, mother of Queen Elizabeth ; Jane 
Seymour, the mother of King Edward the 
Sixth ; Anne of Cleves, Catharine Howard, and 
Catharine Parr. Two of these fair beings 
this infamous tyrant caused to be beheaded. 
His reign of thirty-seven years blackened 
the page of English history in the sacrifice 
of thousands of lives to accomplish his wilful 
purposes ; his daughters, particularly Mary^ 
followed his example. I turned from this 
group with disgust and pity, only, however, 
to admire another, who are the pride and 



MAD. TUSSAUD's GALLERY. 93 

glor}^ of England, which, Heaven grant, may 
grow up in integrity and virtue : 

Her Most Gracious Majesty, Queen Victoria. 

Albert, Prince Consort. 

The Duchess of Kent, the Queen's honor- 
able mother. The royal family consisting of 
nine children — England's honest pride — whose 
names are as follows : 

Victoria Adelaide Mary Louisa ; Albert Ed- 
ward, Prince of Wales ; Alice Maud Mary ; 
Alfred Ernest Albert ; Helena Augusta Vic- 
toria ; Louisa Carolina Alberta ; Arthur Wil- 
liam Patrick Albert ; Leopold George Duncan 
Albert ; Beatrice Mary Victoria Feodore. 

As we turned, well pleased, from England's 
royalty, we felt quite at home as we came in-" 
to the presence of our own honored George 
Washington, and it was with a feeling of min- 
gled pride and joy that we read over his ma- 
jestic form the well-known inscription — " First 
in peace, first in war, and first in the hearts 
of his countrymen !" By his side, as a noble 
companion, stood Benjamin Franklin. In a 
room called the Golden Chamber, filled with 
Napoleonic relics, we saw the bedstead used 
the Emperor during seven years of his 



94 LEAFLETS. 

exile at St. Helena, and the mattress and pil- 
low on which he died. We were allowed to 
sit in his favorite chair and enter the military 
carriage in which he made the campaign of 
Russia — the internal arrangements are so 
constructed, that he could adjust it for a 
bed, on which he slept comfortably ; then, 
into a saloon, where he feasted sumptuously 
at times ; then into a library, containing his 
books and maps, and writing-desk, with its 
secret drawers. It was in this wonder- 
ful carriage that he sketched some of his 
most successful plans. Here is, also, the coro- 
nation coach, with the one used during his 
exile ; and many other interesting and valu- 
able relics, all of which are well authenticated, 
and valued at several thousand pounds. The 
last room we visited was the Chamber of 
Horrors, in which there is a reproduction of 
many of the most bloody murders and mur- 
derers the world ever knew. These ferocious, 
tiger-like physiognomies almost stupefied me 
with terror ; and while we lingered a few 
moments in this room, the gas was suddenly 
extinguished, leaving us with only a glim- 
^mering taper to grope our way through these 



CITY ROAD CHAPEL. 95 

horrid, bloody representations of men whose 
names are recorded in history as the guiltiest 
of the guilty. 

This day is embalmed in holy memories — 
a sparkling gem in the cup of immortality, 

" Like the drops of crystal dew which the wings of angels scatter, 
"When, on a bright Sabbath morn, their plumes quiver most with 

delight." 

At an early hour in the morning, we were 
wending our way to the City Road Chapel, 
to attend morning-service. In the congrega- 
tion were two old ladies, dressed in the style 
of primitive Methodists. At the close of the 
exercises we introduced ourselves to them, 
and learned that they retained a distinct re- 
collection of the Wesleys and their coadjutors. 
They are two of the few links remaining to 
connect the past of Methodism with the 
present. Though aged, they were firm in the 
faith, giving glory to God. After the congre- 
gation left, we took this opportunity to ex- 
amine the interior of the Chapel, and read 
the record of the pious dead, as inscribed on 
tablets inserted in these venerable walls. The 

arched chancel, back of the pulpit, is divided 

8* 



96 LEAFLETS. 

into compartments ; in the centre, in gilt 
lettering, is the Lord's Prayer, the Ten Com- 
mandments and the Apostles' Creed ; on the 
left side are tablets to the memory of John 
Wesley, Joseph Benson and Robert Watson ; 
on the right, to Charles Wesley, Thomas 
Cooke and Adam Clarke. The Sexton con- 
ducted us into the house, standing near the 
church, where Benson lived when he wrote 
his valuable Commentaries, and show^ed us 
the room in which he died. On the opposite 
side is the parsonage, built under the direc- 
tion of Mr. Wesley, where he lived many 
years during the latter part of his life. 
The house has four stories, having the same 
plain and substantial appearance as the 
church. The rooms are convenientl}' ar- 
ranged, so that each floor can be used as a 
suit of rooms for a minister's family. Few 
relics of the furniture are left. The chair in 
which he sat only a few moments previous 
to his death, and the bedstead whereon he 
died, are preserved as sacred relics. 

It was a holy pleasure to stand in the room, 
^'the chamber where the good man met his 
fate, a privilege above the common walks of 



CITY ROAD CHAPEL. 97 

life, quite on the verge of heaven." Here, 
sixty-nine years ago, the golden cord that had 
for eighty-seven years bound him to a life of 
usefulness, snapped asunder, and just as his 
lyre was resting on eaf th, the last note blend- 
ing with the new and triumphant song, the 
deathless spirit still fluttered on his lips to 
utter his last words which trembled on the 
air of heaven, and have since resounded 
thr.mgh the world, ^^tlie beat of all^ God is 
wiili us.^' 

At three o'clock we went to St. Paul's Ca- 
thedral. On entering, we found a small portion 
of the aiave fenced in like a sheep-fold, in 
which the congregation was to be pent up 
during service. As my eye ran over this 
temple, I thought what a magnificent scene 
twelve thousand true worshippers filling 
this Cathedral would present ! We secur- 
ed our seats, and soon after the Lord Mayor, 
with his brilliantly-dressed retinue, came 
in, and were seated, also a great many judges 
and barristers, with periwigs and fantastic 
dress. The opening services, reading prayers, 
singing and chanting were conducted with a 
great deal of pomp and ceremony. A vener- 



98 LEAFLETS. 

able gentleman passed very near where we 
were sitting, and entered the pulpit, with a 
bouquet in his hand, which he placed by the 
Bible. It was Melville. He at once gave out 
the text, "But the natural man receiveth not 
the things of the spirit of God; for they are 
foolishness to him ; neither can he know them, 
because they are spiritually discerned." His 
voice thrilled me like melodious music as I 
gazed upon him, most happily disappointed, 
for I had expected to see a serious, grave old 
man, with a ^^7nemevto movV^ kind of face. 
On the contrary, every angle of his counten- 
ance glowed with the intelligence and benig- 
nity of an angel; his gray hair eminently "a 
crown of glory;" his arguments were pro- 
found ; his illustrations clear as a sunbeam, 
which rendered the sermon eloquent and 
evangelical. What divine lustre ! What a 
halo of glory encircles the inner life, when 
thus the things of God are spiritually dis- 
cerned. 

At an early hour, in the evening, Mr. N 

preached in the City Road Chapel, the Cathe- 
dral of Methodism before alluded to. I hum- 
bly prayed that he might be inspired, and 



I 



ST. Paul's. 99 

deeply embued with the spirit that lived and 
breathed in the holy men who had preached 
in that pulpit : such as the Wesleys, Adam 
Clarke, Cooke and Benson, together with the 
immortal Whitfield. After the sermon we 
tarried for the sacrament ; in the even- 
ing, and in this sacred Chapel, to me it 
was an impressive and thoughtful hour. Mr. 

N was invited by the ministers to assist 

in the administration of the elements, but de- 
clined, and, for the first time in our lives, we 
kneeled side by side around the Lord's table ; 
and as the cup pressed my lips, I prayed earn- 
estly, saying: " my Father, grant that in the 
day thou shalt come to make up thy jewels, 
we may together drink it anew in the kingdom 
of heaven." 



CHAPTER IX 

^V1^'DS0R CASTLE — HERSCHEL'S GRAVE — GRAY'S 
ELEGY — AN ENGLISH FAMILY. 

May 21ih. 
At an early hour we took a train for Wind- 
sor Castle, about twenty miles from Lon- 
don. This Palace is at present Her Majesty's 
most magnificent and charming summer resi- 
dence. As we left London, for several miles 
the view appeared like one continuous city ; 
but at length nature looked out and smiled 
upon us, all robed in green, and adorned with 
luxuriant fields of grain, inclosed by fine 
rounded hedges ; then heavy forests, or little 
groves and parks; thrifty farm-houses, with 
plenty smiling at their doors ; and beauty and 
loveliness in all the landscape. The first 
glimpse I caught of this renowned Castle, as 
it crowned one of nature's grand and rocky 
embattlements, its towers and walls loomed up, 
like visions of airy castles seen in early dreams. 



WINDSOR CASTLE. 101 

As we approached, and winding around its 
rocky height until we reached King Henry 
the Eighth's gateway, the illusion vanished, 
and reality, in massive walls, and lofty turrets, 
looked down on us with all their weight of 
years. The witching imagery which had be- 
guiled many hours of early days, when my 
own imagination had interwoven threads into 
the history of this venerable Castle, now came 
up to demand their truthfulness. At the en- 
trance, the first thing my eye rested on was a 
formal line of military knights, who were 
standing as stiff and motionless as wooden 
men, entirely upsetting my cherished ideas of 
chivalrous knighthood. As we advanced, 
what grandeur and untold wealth greeted us 1 
Her Majesty not being there, we were allow- 
ed to pass through all the state and private 
apartments, except her sleeping rooms. 

The Audience Chamber is gorgeous in 
decorations, the walls are hung in Gobelin 
Tapestry, wrought in significant representa- 
tions in the life of Queen Esther. The ceil- 
ing is an allegorical painting of Queen Kath- 
arine, personifying Britannia, who is seated 
in a chariot drawn by swans, and attended by 



102 LEAFLETS. 

Flora, bound for the Temple of Virtue, which 
is represented in the distance. There are 
many other rooms crowded with interest and 
beauty, which would beggar my powers of de- 
scription ; such as the Van Dyck Room, with 
its walls of portraits and pictures ; the Queen's 
Drawing Room, hung with crimson silk dam- 
ask; the Waterloo Chamber; the Presence 
Chamber, with its heavy carved doors, open- 
ing in the Throne Room. Then came the 
Waterloo Gallery, and St. George's Hall, the 
furniture of which is solid gilt, such as royal- 
ty repose upon. There is heraldry enough 
displayed in one of these rooms to furnish 
study for months. In the last room we enter- 
ed, we saw many old relics, and unique 
specimens of workmanship. On leaving, we 
passed down the grand stair-case which com- 
municated with the hall beneath, then into 
the vestibule, which is forty-seven feet in 
length, and twenty-eight in width, and richly 
decorated. 

We gained access to the Chapel connected 
with the Palace, the interior of which is re- 
markably beautiful. The pavement is inlaid 
in diamond shapes of black and white mar- 



WINDSOR CASTLE. 103 

ble ; the varied tracery on the ceilings ; the 
display of banners and heraldry ; the chair of 
the Sovereign, canopied with rich velvet, em- 
broidered with gold ; the grand organ, to- 
gether with the , 

" Storied windows richly digbt, 
Casting a dim religious light," 

all inspire admiration and reverence; yet I 
trembled with horror when I found myself 
standing over the dust of the infamous Henry 
the Eighth, who is here interred ; but mother 
earth has avenged his tyranny, having held 
his form in her mouldering arms for nearly 
three hundred years, giving him no power to 
sway the usurper's sceptre. At the farther 
end of the same Chapel is the wonderful ceno- 
taph to the memory of the Princess Charlotte, 
which never fails to call forth the warmest 
expressions of enthusiasm. The spirit is 
represented as having just left the form, which 
is below embedded in the cold marble; the 
agony of the death-struggle seems to have left 
its impress, as fearfully revealed beneath the 
thin sheet which wraps the entire body, ex- 
cept one hand. Four female figures, in mourn- 
ful attitudes, kneel around the dead body. 



104 LEAFLETS. 

with their heads covered. Just above there 
is another group, the centre figure represent- 
ing the spirit of the Princess ascending to 
heaven, supported and attended by two angels^ 
one of which is folding gently in its arms 
the spirit of the infant, 

" The tiny flower, whose fatal birth, 
Destroyed the parent stem." 

The rays of light falling from a window of 
orange and purple, and resting on the spirit- 
ual forms of the ascending group, produces a 
celestial effect. 

Windsor Castle, with its vast pile of archi- 
tecture and spacious court-yards, extends over 
an area of not less than thirty acres. The 
terrace on the north affords an extensive pros- 
pect, comprising a variety of pleasing views, 
consisting of meadows, dense forests, sun- 
lit hills, noblemen's mansions, and ancient 
castles and towers, to which may be added 
the river Thames — as if conscious of its im- 
portance — winding its way through shaded 
valleys, until lost in the dim distance. Leav- 
ing this terrace, we ascended over one hun- 
dred steps, to the top of the old round 
tower, which is an extraordinary structure, 



WINDSOR CASTLE. 105 

and an imposing feature of the Castle. In 
1669 it was used as a prison, but at present is 
merely looked at as a relic. On reaching the 
top we gained a view of the Great Park, the 
Virginia Water, and the romantic scenery of 
Surrey hills. As soon as we descended, we- 
took leave of the Castle and grounds, and se- 
curing an open carriage, drove out of the 
town. 

The first object of interest that attracted 
our attention was Eaton College, and its ex- 
tensive grounds, in which w^e saw hundreds 
of boys, all, even to the smaller ones, wear- 
ing tall stove-pipe hats, and engaged in all 
manner of gymnastic sports. The roads were 
in excellent order, and the drive a charming 
one. The trees, and every shrub, were gay 
amid their bloom; while the glad sun-light 
and fresh breeze diffused beauty and joyous- 
ness on all our way; and could we but rejoice 
with nature in all her loveliness 1 The zephyrs 
scattered the yellow flowers of the laburnum 
trees very unceremoniously into our faces, as 
they went skimming through the air as thickly 
as snow-flakes. We stopped a few moments 
and wandered among the old graves, whose 



106 LEAFLETS. 

green mounds still surround the quaint Nor- 
man Church at Upton. Here, we are told, 
that Ilerschel is buried, in whose memory I 
broke a sprig from a venerable, yet singularly 
knotted yew tree, whose outspreading branches 
must have defied the blasts of centuries. 

As we continued our ride, we reached a 
place called Slough, the residence of Herschel, 
where he lived, and where he died ; he whose 
name, as his immortal fame, will ever live 
among the stars. In the open lawn of his 
garden we saw the frame of the great teles- 
cope, through which his eye had often wan- 
dered into the vast expanse of blue, to revel 
amid the steller hosts ; but now the spiritual 
eye of this wonderful man, far in worlds 
above, has no need of such an instrument to 
assist his unlimited vision. 

Leaving this thrillingly interesting place, 
we entered a Park called the Elysian Fields, 
where we saw hundreds of soft-haired fawns, 
skipping and playing on the green grass, or 
beside the meandering streams, and lovingly 
nestling beneath the cooling shadows of the 
trees. In this Park we passed the mansion, 
the family residence of William Penn. 



GRAVE OF GRAY. 107 

It was even-tide when we reached the con- 
secrated shrine, and the long shadows were 
stretching their slender arms across the fields, 
as we stood beside the grave of the im- 
mortal Gray, whose dust reposes beneath a 
plain marble slab, in the shade of the old 
Stoke Pogis Church, and under the ''ivy-man- 
tled tower," where 

"The Curfew tolls the knell of parting- day." 

The same slab, on which his name is in- 
scribed, has long marked his mother's grave ; 
and on it, beneath the thickly spreading 
branches of a yew-tree, he wrote his imperish- 
tal elegy. As we wandered in this seques- 
tered church-yard, in fancy I could hear 
" the moping owl complain to the moon," be-, 
cause our footsteps dared to "molest her an- 
cient, solitary reign." 

" Beneath those rugged elms, that yew-tree's shade, 
Where heaves the turf in many a mouldering heap, 
Each in his narrow cell forever laid, 
The rude forefathers of the hamlet sleep." 

In the open field, at a little distance, 
England, proud of her son, now dead, has 
erected a fine monument to his memory. 

Climbing over a rude fence, we wended 

9^ 



108 LEAFLETS. 

through the tall, damp grass, until we were 
near enough to read the brief, but truthful, 
inscriptions, besides several quotations from 
his immortal poetry. 

I am agreeably disappointed in the man- 
ners and social characters of the English 
people. Even our landlady, who, at first, 
seemed like a walking icicle, now appears 
genial, and even loving. I had heard so much 
about rank and caste, which, like a weight or 
girdle, binds down society, and prevents the 
social elements finding their own level, that 
I had really supposed, in coming to London, 
as far as society was concerned, it would be 
like rushin^" into the midst of a winter of Al- 
pine snows, that would perfectly wither all 
the warmth of any loving heart. The appa- 
rent coldness of every one did, for some time,, 
prevent a familiar approach by the many let- 
ters of introduction with which our friends had 
kindly furnished us. But the truth is, that 
we have, until within a few days, had more to 
do with sight-seeing and names of those who 
have lived ''long ago," than with the people 
and present of London. We decided, however, 
to present a letter, given us by our good and 



ENGLISH FAMILY. 109 

noble friend, Dr. S , of New York, to Mr. 

C , of London, who had himself twice visit- 
ed America, once as a delegate to the Bible 
Society ; and, at another time, in company 
with his family, traveled through the United 
States. Yie were, verj^ soon after, invited 
to dine with this family, which was gladly 
accepted, as we were anxious to learn some- 
thing of household joys around an English 
hearth-stone. I assure you I can never find 
words that will convey to you my apprecia- 
tion of the generous welcome they gave us ; 
how kindly and even lovingly they dealt with 
our stranger hearts ; we were at once hemmed 
by ''love's strong hold." We arrived there 
about six o'clock P. M., and found that seve- 
ral intelligent and refined persons, with two 
or three ministers, and their wives, had been 
invited to join us there. In a little time we 
were summoned to surround the table, which 
was loaded with all the luxuries that com- 
plete a genuine English dinner. Our Ameri- 
can temperance principles were, however, 
somewhat shocked, on observing four glasses, 
arranged at each plate, which were in turn 
filled with wine and liquors. This is a pre- 



110 LEAFLETS. 

vailing custom throughout all England. Even 
the clergy, at the present day, retire to the 
vestry, after service, to drink their glass of 
wine and eat a piece of cake, which the Sex- 
ton understands as one of his duties to pro- 
vide. 



CHAPTER X. 

TOMB OF THOMSON— POPE'S GR OTT — H A M PT .V 
COURT PALACE — CRYSTAL PALACE. 

June bill. 

What pleasant memories have been awak- 
ened to-day in recalling the past ! and how 
the moments have seemed to glide away amid 
scenes of present loveliness ! To-day we have 
been treading on classic ground. At Rich- 
mond — in an old chmxh-yard, where the birds 
were singing sweetly, a.nd the wild flowers 
were blooming, and the tall, rank grass was 
growing luxuriantly — there Thomson, the 
poet, is sleeping peacefully. As we stood by 
his grave, how his brilliant genius appeared 
before us ! and his beautiful and soul-stirring 
effusions, long treasured in our hearts, were 
here recalled, in all their freshness. 

Leaving Richmond, we came to Twicken- 
ham, where Pope lived, wrote and died, and 
where his Grotto still remains, into which we 
were only allowed to glance. At every step, 



112 LEAFLETS. 

we fancied we could catch the notes from his 
immortal lyre. Even the leaves on the trees 
growing in his garden, as they quivered or 
rustled in the gentle breeze, were music to 
his memory. His remains are in the village 
church ; and there, on a monumental tablet, 
erected to his memory, we found a medallion 
head of the great poet, beneath which is this 
peculiar and original inscription : 

"for one who would not be buried in WESTMINSTER ABBEY. 

"Heroes and kings, your distance keep ! 
In peace let one poor poet sleep, 
Who never flattered folks like you : 
Let Horace blush, and Virgil, too!" 

After riding a few miles along a charming 
road, (and, by the way, all the roads are good 
in the environs of London,) we arrived at 
Hampton Court Palace, once a royal resi- 
dence, built by Cardinal Wolsey, about the 
year 1515, at the time he had attained the 
summit of his power and glory. When it 
was completed, it surpassed, in elegance and 
in grandeur, all the palaces of England. King 
Henry the Eighth, then on the throne, jeal- 
ousy admiring its magnificence, one day asked 
the Cardinal his intentions and his motives 



HAMPTON COURT PALACE. 113 

in building such a grand residence. The 
Cardinal's keen penetration detected the de- 
sign of the King in asking this question, as its 
costliness had already excited the envy of the 
Court. He quickly and ingenuously replied : 
'^ that he had built a palace worthy of so 
great a monarch, and that Hampton Court 
Palace was the property of King Henry the 
Eighth." The Cardinal's reply, a shrewd 
stroke of policy on his part, is said greatly to 
have pleased the proud and ambitious King, 
who afterward bestowed upon him many fa- 
vors, in return giving him the old and favor- 
ite manor of Richmond, greatly to the annoy- 
ance of the old servants of Henry the Seventh, 
who considered Wolsey an upstart. From 
this time, Hampton Court Palace became the 
home of royalty, and during the reign of 
Henry the Eighth, it was a constant scene of 
brilliant display and extravagant festivity. 
Edward the Sixth resided here during his 
short reign. Queen Mary, and Philip of 
Spain, passed their honeymoon here, in re- 
tirement. Queen Elizabeth, also, lived here, 
in '' single blessedness," not willing to share 
her glory with another. The death of Eliza- 



114 ' LEAFLETS. 

beth united the crowns of England and Scot- 
land, when James the Sixth, of Scotland, 
became, also, King of England, when this be- 
came one of his favorite palaces ; and it was 
here that his lovely Queen, Anna^ died, in 
1618. Charles the First, who succeeded him 
and Queen Henrietta, fled to this palace, fear- 
ful of the plague that was then raging in Lon- 
don ; but, alas ! in a few years after, it proved 
to be an asylum from a calamity more to be 
dreaded than the plague. The clamor of in- 
surrection, however, made this retirement 
brief. The turbulent spirit of the times caused 
his crown to press painfully upon his throb- 
bing brow; for shortly after which, he was 
detained here, in splendid imprisonment, un- 
til he effected an escape to the charming Isle 
of Wight, when the fatal events of a few 
months brought him to the scaffold — not un- 
frequently the fate of Kings in those days. 
William the Third did much to beautify these 
grounds during his reign. George the First 
held his court here ; while George the Second 
and his Queen, Caroline, were the last sover- 
eigns who resided at Hampton Court Palace. 
There is no royal residence in England richer 



HAMPTON COURT PALACE. 115 

in thrilling historical events than this. How 
closely interwoven with the history of this 
palace is that of Queens Mary and Elizabeth, 
who both spent many of their days here. 

Mary, the eldest daughter of King Henry 
the Eighth, was born, February, 1517, at 
Greenwich. At the death of her half-brother, 
Edward the Sixth, she was proclaimed Queen, 
July, 1553, and in October of the same year 
she was crowned. She was married to Philip 
of Spain in 1554, and, as I have stated, they 
spent a few weeks after their marriage in this 
palace. Philip was several years younger 
than Mary, and was very ambitious, expect- 
ing, by this relation, to come in possession of 
the crown of England, or, at least, to share 
it jointly with the Queen. When she refused 
both, he abandoned her and returned to Spain. 
During Queen Mary's reign, persecutions raged 
fiercely, and she was guilty of many shocking 
deeds, which have, for all time, crimsoned a 
name known only as '^Bloody Mary." Even 
Cranmer — who, at one time was her benefac- 
tor, and was the means of saving her life 
when her father determined on her death, 

because she adhered to her mother, and re- 

10 



116 LEAFLETS. 

fused to submit to him — as his only reward 
for all this, she caused him to be burnt at the 
stake, for no other reason than that he did 
not religiously believe as she did. She died 
as she had lived, with but few to mourn her 
death, November 7, 1558, in the forty-second 
year of her age. Elizabeth, who had sub- 
mitted to her half-sister's cruel tyranny, by 
being imprisoned several times, now proud- 
ly ascended the throne. Her long reign is 
known in history as the " Elizabethan Age," 
in which spring up names, still flashing in 
the world of learning, as brilliant meteors 
or dazzling luminaries. What other age can 
boast of such names as Spencer, Shakespeare, 
Bacon, Raleigh, and many others, who gained 
their celebrity during her reign ? Elizabeth 
was herself a splendid scholar, endowed with 
talents which were cultivated and refined by 
education. She was commanding and grace- 
ful in person, without beauty of face, except 
an animated expression, and large, lustrous 
eyes, which at times flashed fire at those 
who had incurred her displeasure. Her dis- 
position was not considered amiable; never- 
theless, she was a noble Queen. She refused 



HAMPTON COURT PALACE. 117 

every offer of marriage, as I have said, de- 
claring; that she was satisfied with her coro- 
nation vows, which married her to the people 
of her kingdom, choosing to be called in life, 
and epitheted in death, as the ^'Virgin 
Queen." She was as firm a Protestant as 
Mary was a Catholic. It is related of her 
that, at one time, when pressed by a priest to 
declare her opinion in regard to the real body 
of Christ, in the holy wafer, she answered him 
in an impromptu verse : 

" Christ was the word that spake it ; 
He took the bread and brake it ; 
And wliat the Word did make it. 
That I believe, and take it." 

The greatest blot on the page of her queen- 
ly history is' the imprisonment and execution 
of her cousin, Mary Queen of Scots. Her 
innocence of the crime of which she was 
charged, and her natural loveliness, will never 
allow the stain to be fully erased from the 
memory of Elizabeth. She died March 24th, 
1602, at the great age of sixty-nine years. 

This palace still remains splendidly fur- 
nished, every apartment bearing the impress 
of its former grandeur. The walls are paint- 



118 LEAFLETS. 

ed in florid style, and many of the ceilings 
are covered with allegorical figures, and ele- 
gantly wrought wood-work, of cuiious design. 
The walls are hung with over one thousand 
paintings, many of them by the old masters. 
In one of the rooms are the veritable car- 
toons of Raphael, executed in the year 1520, 
by an order of Pope Leo the Tenth, to deco- 
rate the pontifical apartments of the Vatican, 
when copied in tapestry. They represent a 
series of incidents taken from the life of our 
Saviour, and the acts of the Apostles. Ra- 
phael was afterward invited to Rome, and 
introduced to the Pope, under whose patron- 
age he developed those wonderful talents 
which crowned him " Prince of Painters," 
and gave him the well-known title of "Ra- 
phael the Divine." He died at the early age 
of thirty-seven, leaving his immortal painting 
of the ''Transfiguration" still wet on the can- 
vas, which was carried before him to his 
tomb, in the Pantheon at Rome. 1 must 
acknowledge I felt a devotional yielding of 
my knees, as 1 stood before what seemed to 
be a kind of divinity of art, the wonderful 
productions of his pure, celestial-like genius. 



HAMPTON COURT PALACE. 119 

I pray, do not, however, from my own enthu- 
siastic acknowledgments, accuse me of pic- 
ture-worship. To be an idolater before visit- 
ing the mid-daj^ splendors of art at the 
Louvre, in Paris, or the Vatican, in Rome, 
would, I am sure, be premature homage to 
art. To do as the Romans do, is to bow be- 
fore every painted daub, w^here there is the 
faintest outline of a saint's head. I can never 
thus kneel before the altars of superstition ; 
but genius will ever maintain a holy altar, 
before which I joy to bow. 

I cannot leave this charming spot without 
taking you with me, a few moments, at least, 
into the grounds and gardens of the Palace. 
The walks must be three miles in extent. 
The building of itself covers an area of eight 
acres. The broad avenues, formed by elms 
and lime-trees, reach out in straight lines, 
from the lake in the centre, trimmed to form 
tunnels, and extending archways. The com- 
pass and nurserj^man's shears have changed 
the graceful hollies and yews into peacocks, 
birds and animals, and hundreds of curious 
shapes and forms, which, in my opinion, 
divests Nature of much of her beauty. I 

10^ 



120 LEAFLETS. 

cannot think that it is the prerogative of art 
to interfere to any extent with trees and 
shrubs, except in a careful cultivation, allow- 
ing them to grow free and graceful. By pay- 
ing an English sixpence, we were permitted 
to enter the green-houses, where still remain 
a few rare plants, and some large orange-trees, 
bearing fruit. The chief object of interest, 
however, is the immense vine growing there, 
the largest in all Europe, and thought by 
many to be the largest in the world. The 
main vine is over one hundred feet long, with 
numerous branch-vines. In its season, it 
abundantly supplies the royal table with 
thousands of clusters. 

After amusing, puzzling, and enjoying our- 
selves trying to discover the intricacies of the 
maze, or labyrinth, we lelt the ground through 
the magnificent ''Lion Gate," and emerged at 
once into a grand forest of chesnut-trees, run- 
ning off in broad avenues in every direction, 
miles in extent, through which w^e passed on 
our way home. 

How I do wish that, for once, the sun would 
shine out clear and bright, as it does in Amer- 
ica. This impenetrable, misty vail, forever 



CRYSTAL PALACE. 121 

hanging over us, is enough to give any one 
the blues. This unceasing, drizzling rain is 
anything but agreeable to those who are sight- 
seeing. Still, we do not allow the weather to 
interfere with our plans ; for, this morning, in 
the rain, we jumped into an omnibus, and 
rode to the depot, where we purchased our 
tickets for Sydenham, and it was not long 
before we were in sight of the magnificent 
Crystal Palace. Our miniature Crystal Pal- 
ace in New York, now reduced to ashes, was 
only a mere toy in comparison to this mam- 
moth transparent building, looming up before 
us. Leaving the cars, we entered the Palace 
by a glass-covered colonade, adorned on either 
side with creeping vines, and an array of 
flowering plants, into the immense structure, 
which consists of a grand central naive and 
two side aisles, two main galleries, three 
transepts, and two wings. The entire length 
of the building, including the wings, is two 
thousand seven hundred and fifty-six feet. 
There is excellent, as well as exquisite, taste 
manifested in the arrangement of the flowers, 
of almost every hue and form, from every clime ; 
while plants, shrubs and trees wave their fo- 



122 LEAFLETS. 

liage in harmony with other forms of beaut}^, 
presenting a picturesque back-ground, reliev- 
ing the white statues standing thickly grouped, 
along the nave; while the blue aerial tint re- 
flecting from the arched roof, renders an addi- 
tional charm to the various industrial and art 
courts. The whole building is grand and 
conspicuous, filled with almost every specimen 
of art, in all its variety, from the most remote 
ages dow^n to modern times. I lingered long 
to admire the '^Alhambra Court,'" the most 
beautiful of all the reproductions of the an- 
cient palaces. Its architecture is Saracenic or 
Moresque, which sprang from the Romanesque ; 
the interior is gorgeously covered with the 
richest Arabesque work, in colored stucco; 
the pavement is Mosaic, in the centre of which 
is a sparkling fountain, encircled with flowers, 
perfuming the air with fragrance. This ele- 
gant court is reproduced from the vast Fort- 
ress-Palace of the Alhambra, constructed 
under Moorish rule in the city of Granada, 
South of Spain, in the thirteenth centurj^ 

Among the many wonders we saw exhibit- 
ed in this Palace that interested me most, 
was the bark of an immense tree, which had 



CRYSTAL PALACE. 123 

been cut in pieces to facilitate transportation 
such a distance. It is here arranged just as 
it grew on the tree, which was once deeply 
rooted in the soil of California, where it 
attained the gigantic height of four hundred 
feet. Fancy to yourself such a tree, with its 
forest of branches and a canopy of foilage, 
that must have appeared like the outspreading 
of the curtain of heaven. The bark as it 
now stands on the floor, forms a room within 
large enough to hold forty or fifty persons. 
Dr. Lindley has named it the '' Wellingtonia 
gigantia," and says that its age must be four 
thousand years. A specimen of the wood was 
also shown, which is light cedar, and as- 
serted to be the same as the " Cedars of Leb- 
anon." What a grand old tree this must have 
been when Solomon built his beautiful temple 
at Jerusalem 1 In the afternoon, four thousand 
children, from the Orphan Asylum were ar- 
ranged on graded seats under the central 
dome, and at three o'clock P. M., an audience 
of twenty thousand were assembled in front 
of them, to listen to their singing. The pecu- 
liarity of their dress, and the arrangement of 
each school, made the sight a singular and 



124 LEAFLETS. 

pleasing one, and the waving of their hand- 
kerchiefs in concert called forth the most en- 
thusiastic demonstrations from the audience. 
We were reminded of the new song of the 
"hundred, forty and four thousand" on Mount 
Zion, when all these little bird-like voices 
joined in glad alleluiahs, swelling, as they 
swept, in strains of seraphic music through 
these extensive and lovely aisles, which ap- 
peared all glorious, like unto the Temple 
made without hands, of jasper stone, clear 
as crystal. ^'God save the Queen" found 
a response in every heart; and Luther's 
Judgment Hymn was extraordinary in its 
effect, accompanied at intervals by a trum- 
pet, which sounded loud and long. After 
these exercises closed, the fountains in the 
Palace-grounds, which only play on grand oc- 
casions, where allowed to send into the air 
their thousand sparkling jets, to gratify these 
dear little orphans. But heavy showers pre- 
vented our examining the grounds carefully, 
and we left with the promise to come at 
another time. 



CHAPTEK XI. 

WHITFIELD'S CHAPEL— LONDON DO CKS — GR EEN WIG H 
-OBSERVATORY— NATIONAL GALLERY— BUN- 
HILL FIELDS BURYING GROUNDS. 

June 8th. 
Last evening we heard the Rev. Mr. Pun- 
shon lecture in Whitfield's Chapel, on Totten- 
ham Court Road, a second Cathedral of 
Methodism, the first stone of which was laid 
May 10th, 1756, and opened for divine service 
the following November, when the immortal 
Whitfield chained an immense audience by 
one of his soul-stirring discourses. Here his 
wife is buried, and on a tablet in this Church, 
erected to her memory, is also an inscription 
to her husband's, whose dust still makes the 
soil of New England sacred. We had hoped 
and somewhat anticipated the counterpart of 
the " Prince of Preachers " in the talented 
Punshon, as suggested of him when he deliv- 
ered his famous lecture on the Huguenots. 
We confess to our disappointment, it proving 



126 LEAFLETS. 

at. this time to be by no means, one of his 
happy efforts. 

To-day we have visited the great ware- 
houses at the London Docks containing large 
quantities of teas, tobacco and spices; also 
the wine-vaults, with an array of casks ex- 
tending over acres, with Bacchus on his 
throne, as supreme monarch. Our guide led 
us for miles through these damp vaulted laby- 
rinths, where pipe after pipe is piled up on 
either side, and informed us that the atmos- 
phere of the vaults is so impregnated with 
the exhalations of the liquors, that persons 
are often affected by it. We closely examin- 
ed the fungus, a curious ibrmation, w^hich 
accumulates on these extensive walls, from 
those exhalations, and hanging down, in many 
places, in graceful festoons, some of which 
were gray and some black, the gray or white 
indicating the greater. age of the wine. 

The warehouses were filled with w^ealth, in 
tortoise and mother-of-pearl shells, elephant's 
tusks, silks, Turkish carpets, and sugar, tea 
and spices, appearing to be enough to supply 
a nation, if not the world, for ages. 

Having completed our tour at the London 



GREENWICH. 12? 

Docks, we took a small steamer for Green- 
wich, enjoying a charming sail on the Thames. 
As soon as we arrived we proceeded to the Ob- 
servatory, which is situated on an eminence 
not far distant, one of the great light-houses 
of the world of science. On our return, we 
stopped at the Marine Hospital, where we 
saw hundreds of old naval officers and soldiers, 
many of whom had fought under the com- 
mand of the brave Nelson, whose name and 
memory they almost, if not quite, deify. It 
was amusing and interesting to hear them re- 
late their adventures, and then point from their 
mutilated bodies to the trophies of their vic- 
tories. At none of these relics did I gaze 
with such a thrill of emotion as at the coat 
and waistcoat worn by Nelson when he fell on 
the quarter-deck of the '' Victory " at the 
memorable battle of Trafalgar, with the stains 
of his death wound still visible upon them. 

It is still dark and rainy, but I hie me 
away for enjoyment to the National Gallery, 
situated on the north side of Trafalgar 
Square, looking out on the imposing monu- 
ment erected to the memory of the hero who 

fell at the place from which the Square de- 

11 



128 LEAFLETS. 

rives its name. Cloudy skies, with wind and 
rain, were soon forgotten in this little world 
of paintings, composing a choice collection, 
and many of them by the celebrated old mas- 
ters, as Correggio, Guido, Michael Angelo, 
Murillo, Gasper, Titian, Van Dyck, Leonardo 
dn Yinci, and many others. While lingering 
here I have been comparing the pictures of 
these great artists of different schools; but 
none seemed to me to combine such exquisite 
taste, in shading and colors, with beauty and 
truthfulness, as those of Murillo. 

' There is music in the name, 
And it falls upon my ear, 
Like a lute-note, soft and clear — 
Is it strange I love it so? " 

This eminent painter belonged to the Spanish 
school of the sixteenth century. He was 
born January 1st, 1618, and died at the age 
of sixty-four, by falling from the scaffold 
where he was painting a fresco. In this gal- 
lery, I found but three of his paintings ; the 
Holy Family, lovingly grouped together ; St. 
John and the Lamb, so extensively known by 
an engraved copy; and the other the head of 
a boy. 



LONDON. 129 

We are again in our little room, after an 
absence of two days, which have passed de- 
lightfully among those we have learned to 
love in England as friends. 

I sometimes sigh for home in this month 
of leaves and roses, when I think of our own 
blue sky and genial sunshine. But nature 
here is exceedingly lavish in clothing every- 
thing with a robe of beauty, that springs from 
the earth, even if she does withhold the bright 
shining of the sun. Her profuse liberality 
in watering the earth causes it to ^'bud and 
blossom as the rose," and to bring forth abun- 
dantly. The foliage is of a deep glossy 
green, and extravagant in luxuriance. The 
flowers bloom profusely, but are not as rich in 
fragrance as ours. The birds, what musicians ! 
In all our excursions in the country, and even 
in the parks and gardens of London, we have 
been gratuitously greeted by nature's min- 
strels, warbling their choicest and richest 
melodies. If I were endowed with the heaven- 
given powers of Handel, I might attempt to 
convey some idea of the captivating, and 
perfectly enrapturing, song of the night- 
ingale at even-tide, and the soul-thrilling notes 



130 LEAFLETS . 

of the English Lark, as she springs from her 
dewy nest in the green meadow, at early 
morn. As she soars from the ground, and 
sweeps gracefully through the air, in circling 
eddies, her soft low notes rise and swell with 
her narrowing circles, while every strain is 
one voluptuous peal of melodious music, float- 
ing from all the strings of nature's lyre. 

Mr. N was invited to fill the pulpit of 

a Chapel near Clapham Park. In England 
all places of worship not of the Established 
Church are called chapels, and the clergymen 
of such are styled preachers. But, alas ! how 
many times I transgressed these convention- 
alities by calling chapels churches, and the 
preachers clergymen. We spent the Sabbath 
with Mr. C — 's family, whomi we had previous- 
ly visited so pleasantly. The father is a noble, 
princely man, and a faithful priest in his 

household. Mrs. C is a real lady, and an 

amiable mother. The children kind and lov- 
ing; the two eldest, who are young ladies, are 
accomplished and beautiful, and devote much 
of their time and talents to benevolent enter- 
prises. In my intercourse with them, they 



mothers' society. 131 

related to me this little incident; it occurred 

in connection with the ladies' association, 

known as the Mothers' Society, which had 

connected with it a valuable and well-selected 

library, richly laden with choice Christian 

literature, that poor and destitute women 

might here drink from a pure fountain. Early 

one morning a woman, not in rags, but poorly 

clad, called, and modestly asked for a book to 

read, and what book, think you, she asked 

for? It was the Bible! but the librarian, 

greatly confused, was obliged to inform her, 

there was not a Bible in the library. There 

were ladies connected with the association, 

whose duty, and even pleasure, it was, every 

day to scatter the precious leaves of ''life's 

fair tree," but it had never occurred to them 

that any one would call at this library to read 

the Book of books. Yet this poor woman, 

hungering for the spiritual food, had been 

driven here to remind these Christian ladies 

that among all their volumes the Lamp of 

Life did not illumine their library. She did 

not leave, however, without being supplied 

with bread, which our Saviour assures us "if a 

man eat he shall never hunger," and that wa- 
ll* 



1S2 LEAFLETS. 

ter which was in her, "a well of water spring- 
ing up into everlasting life." 

In the morning, we were in attendance 
at the Sabbath - school, which reminded 
me of our own at home, though it was 

much smaller ; after which, Mr. N 

preached to a large and interesting audi- 
ence, and again in the evening. 

We spent the afternoon with Miss Pipe 
and her mother, who have charge of a 
very genteel young Ladies' Boarding School. 
Miss Pipe, the principal, is a brilliant 
lady, in whose character are blended the 
graces of the spirit, harmonizing with a 
thoroughly cultivated intellect. We dined 
with the ladies, about twenty in all, and sel- 
dom, if ever, have I seen such bright-eyed 
intelligence, as beamed and glowed in their 
smiling faces. The principal is assisted in 
every department of the school by the best 
professors from the city. The elegant appear- 
ance of the table, and the arrangement of 
every room in the house ; the ample and 
beautifully adorned grounds and gardens, 
where the ladies are allowed to wander in all 
their quiet loveliness — everything conspires 



ENGLISH ROCKERY. 133 

to make it one of the most desirable schools 
for young ladies I have ever visited. 

The next morning we made our grateful 
adieux to the dear family who had so kindly 
entertained us, and, in company with Misses 
Sarah and Edith, the eldest daughters, set out 
on our second visit to the Crystal Palace. 
Before taking the cars, we called at Mr. 
G 's, who lives in a palatial home, sur- 
rounded with rural grounds, yet adorned with 

rare beauty. Mrs. G , whom we had met 

the day before in church, we found to be an 
intelligent lady, who has in her possession 
several letters written by Adam Clarke, and 
some valuable manuscripts, which are precious 
relics. In these gardens we were shown an 
Eno^lish rockerv, the first I had ever seen, 
unique and romantic, but truthful in its imi- 
tation of nature. The rocks are formed from 
a composition-cement and earth into cragged 
shapes, rudely piled upon each other, as often 
seen in nature, with the velvet moss and 
ferns of the forest growing profusely upon 
them, in native wildness. As we wandered 
through these rugged pathways, ever and 
anon we observed little silver-like streams 



134 LEAFLETS. 

winding hither and thither, then trickling 
down through the fissures and crevices, mur- 
muring sweet music, until, gathering strength 
as they advance, they leap over the mimic 
rocks in laughing cascades, forming a trans- 
parent lakelet below, on the pebbled shore of 
which are rustic seats, shaded by overhang- 
ing willows ; the scene combining all the soli- 
tude of a lone, sequestered dell. 

We arrived at the Crystal Palace about 
11 o'clock, A. M., and walked for several 
hours over the extensive grounds, which we 
had been prevented from doing at a previous 
visit, in consequence of the rain. On the 
parapet of the first great terrace are twenty- 
six allegorical statues, representing im- 
portant manufacturing countries, and indus- 
trial cities of England and France, which im- 
pressed me as being the most imposing feature 
of the grounds. The Archery and Cricket 
grounds are exceedingly attractive, while the 
Italian and English landscapes are perfectly 
charming. The "Rosery" consists of an ar- 
cade, formed of Arabesque iron-work, around 
which are twined almost every variety of 
roses, filling the air with their fragrance. 



CRYSTAL PALACE. 135 

The varied lawns and sparkling fountains; 
the rare trees, shrubs and flowers, everywhere 
tastefully arranged, reminds one of Eden 
charmingly restored. 

We tarried for some time on the Grand 
Plateau, examining the geological restora- 
tions of the preadamic, or extinct animals, 
fishes, and birds, arranged here and there on 
an island, in the midst of a small lake.. They 
are represented as huge in their proportions, 
with strange, ungainly forms, which Geology 
has restored to us from fragments found em- 
bedded in rocks. These islands, with their 
wonderful scientific illustrations and singular 
tenants, dot a large artificial lake, on whose 
placid bosom were fantastic pleasure-boats, of 
almost every size and form, from the gay Ve- 
netian gondola to the little row-boat and In- 
dian canoe. On reaching the shore, we pro- 
posed to take a sail. At that moment, we 
observed that different countries were repre- 
sented by their national flags floating over 
these tiny vessels, at anchor in a miniature 
harbor. Now commenced a good-natured 
contest. Our English companions laughingly 
said, '' now you must sail under English 



136 LEAFLETS. 

colors ;" but the spirit of our glorious fore- 
fathers, who had broken the chains that bound 
us to Britain, rose up before us, and the love 
of American liberty went throbbing through 
our veins, as we said, ^'no, but we will sail 
under the star-spangled banner." The ladies 
pointed to their English flag, while we looked 
in vain for the ''red, white, and blue;" but 
it was not among the national emblems. Why 
is it not here ? inquired we of the boatman, 
who, fearing that he might lose his shilling, 
apologized by saying "it had been taken 
down that morning to be washed, and that it 
was now in the boat-house." Our English 
ladies had the laugh on us ; but we thought, 
that John Bull did not care to show ojff 
the emblem of the strength of his trans- 
atlantic cousins. We submitted with as good 
a grace as possible ; but, on stepping into the 
boat, we exclaimed: 

'■ the star-spaagled banner, 0! long may it wave 

O'er tlio land of the free, and the home of the brave!" 

After the sail, we entered the Palace, 
and spent some time examining the articles 
exhibited in a Ladies' Fair, held, at that time, 
in one part of the building. In a few hours 



BUNHILL FIELDS. - 137 

we parted with our dear lady-friends, and re- 
turned to London, where we arrived, in time 
to visit, that afternoon, the Bunhill Fields 
Burial-Grounds — "the Campo Santo" of the 
Dissenters — who, it is said, conscientiously ob- 
jected to the burial-service in the Book of 
Common Prayer. De Foe relates of these 
grounds, that, while the plague prevailed in 
London, in 1665, they were used as a pest- 
field — that the great pit in Finsbury, in the 
parish of Cripplegate, which has since been 
walled within this inclosure, was then open, 
and that many, who were fatally infected, 
ran, in their delirium, wrapped in old blank- 
ets or rags, and, throwing themselves into 
the pit, expired, and were left thus exposed 
until others were brought to be buried. These 
extensive grounds are walled in, and, as we 
strolled, for over an hour, through the tall 
grass that grows upon the turf that heaves 
over line after line of mouldering heaps, we 
paused, reading on weather-beaten slabs the 
records of the distinguished dead. Here we 
found the grave of that excellent and "elect- 
lady," Susannah Wesley, called, by Taylor, 
the " Mother of Methodism " inasmuch as she 



138 LEAFLETS. 

trained its illustrious founders. She was born 
in London, in 1G70, and from her lather, Dr. 
Samuel Annesley, she inherited her energy, 
method, and power of character ; and trans- 
mitted them to her son, John Wesley, as 
afterward demonstrated in his life of un- 
unparalelled usefulness. She was married, at 
the age of nineteen, to Rev. Samuel We.4eyy 
a clergyman of the Established Church, whose 
peculiar views often placed himself and fam- 
ily under trying circumstances, particularly 
in the early part of theii* married life. They 
were surrounded by an unusual number of 
children, nineteen in all — thirteen of whom 
lived to rise up and call their mother blessed. 
The entire affairs of the household, and the 
training of the children, devolved upon Mrs. 
Wesley, who, happily, possessed every requi- 
site of a teacher. 

The obscure Rectory at Epworth, where 
the family lived for many years, presented a 
beautiful picture of a domestic sanctuary, in 
which Christian virtues and graces were de- 
veloped; also a family-seminary, where per- 
fect order was maintained, in opening and 
closing with prayer and smging, every morn- 



BUNHILL FIELDS. 139 

ing and evening, completing a lovely family 
circle, the mother being the centre of house- 
hold joys. She was as beautiful as she was 
accomplished, and amiable as she was pious, 
having a loveliness of face and figure seldom 
seen. But seeming entirely unconscious of 
this fact, she devoted all the faculties of her 
high-toned nature, which was strong in every 
part, to the stern duties of life — making her 
a distinguished woman, a faithful wife, and a 
devoted and loving mother. She died in 
London, at the age of seventy-three. The 
last words she uttered to those who were 
standing around her, when dying, were r 
"children, as soon as I am released, sing a 
psalm of praise to God!" She was interred 
in this burying-ground, among the illustrious 
dead, where she still sleeps in peace. Here, 
also, are the graves of John Bunyan, who 
died 1688, and Dr. Isaac Watts, who died 
1748. The "Pilgrim's Progress" of the for- 
mer, and the "Psalms and Hymns" of the 
latter, have, as gentle hand-maidens, or attend- 
ing angels, accompanied the Bible wherever it 
has gone, in our own hearts and homes, and in 

distant lands, rendering John Bunyan and 

12 



MO LEAFLETS. 

Isaac Watts '' sacred names." Among all these 
graves, we did not forget the restmg-place of 
George Fox, who founded a sect called 
^ Quakers," and from the mound that marks 
the spot, I gathered some beautiful spears of 
grass as a memento. May he sleep quietly, 
until the Spirit moves him to rise, "at the 
last great day." 



CHAPTER XII. 

A PRAYER MEETING — SEEING THE QUEEN AND 
ROYAL FAMILY. 

I HAVE now been in London and its environs 
over four weeks, and really begin to feel 
marvelonsly at home. I have even ventured 
out in this Babylonian city, and several times 
visited the British Museum and National Gal- 
lery without a guide ; some of the streets begin 
to appear as familiar as Broadway, in New 
York. This morning I very reluctantly pack- 
ed my trunk, expecting to leave, but a change 
in the arrangement of the trains detained us 
until evening, affording me a fine opportunity 
to give you the finale of our wanderings and 
sojourn here. On Tuesday morning I arose 
early, and accompanied Mrs. E , an Eng- 
lish lady, and a member of the Established 
Church, to a six o'clock prayer-meeting, held 
in one of the rooms belonging to the Young 



142 LEAFLETS. 

Men's Christian Association. Only a few 
were present, but a spirit of earnest prayer 
prevailed before the throne, the burden of 
which was a young lady in high life, whom 
the Spirit had inclined to meet with them^ 
and who, while there, had sought and found 
the -'pearl of great price," As it began to 
reflect its brightness upon her pathway, 
gilding the circle in which she moved, her 
friends observed the rapid development of the 
higher and nobler life within ; but their 
own proud hearts, untouched by God's Holy 
Spirit, would not listen to her experience, 
neither to the promptings of spirit voices 
whispering to them, but in malice and bitter- 
ness they opposed her, and confined her to 
her room, hoping thereby to abate her ardor. 
One morning she awoke, a raving maniac, 
which they at once declared to be the 
effect of religion. In this little room, early 
in the morning, I found a band of Christians, 
praying '' earnestly and without ceasing" for 
her, that though absent from them she might 
be loosed from the power that bound her 
reason, and that soon she might again worship 
with them, "sitting at the feet of Jesus, and 



PRAYER-MEETING. 143 

clothed in her right mind." Their prayers 
were answered, and God's cause triumphed 
over the prince of darkness. 

A great revival spirit is extending all over 
Great Britain. Union in effort is the watch- 
word among all Christians, and denomina- 
tional prejudices are banished. It has been 
delightful to attend these meetings, which 
are held in all parts of the city. 

We have visited the Ragged Schools, that 
are accomplishing a great work among the 
forlorn outcasts of every street, in feeding 
and clothing them, and teaching them useful 
and honorable employment. 

We have seen Queen Victoria and the Royal 
family; but we came very near leaving Lon- 
don without enjoying this unspeakable privi- 
lege. Soon after our arrival in the city, we 
applied to^Mr. Dallas, the American Ambassa- 
dor, for tickets to admit us to the Queen's 
Drawing-Room; they were readily promised, 
but we were not in haste to secure them, know- 
ing that Her Majesty was then at the Osborne 
House ; but, taking up the London Times 
a few mornings since, I read that on Tuesday 

''Her Most Gracious Majesty, Victoria, would 

10^ 



144 LEAFLETS. 

again hold her Drawing-Room in the Palace 
of St. James." We sent immediately for 
tickets, but as there is only a limited number 
at the disposal of our minister, they had all 
been previously distributed, which we were 

assured he deeply regretted. Mr. N ^ 

more fortunate than myself, had seen the 
Queen as she was taking an evening ride, and 
did not care to go out on this gloomy, rainy 
day to see her again ; but as it might be the 
only opportunity I would have to see the wo- 
man that a great and powerful nation has 
sceptred and crowned as Queen, I was quite 
determined to catch a glimpse of her, even at 
the last moment. 

Having secured a carriage, I rode to the 
Park, where our vehicle was not allowed to 
enter ; but ascertaining that persons on foot 
were, I jumped from the carriage, and, 
through the drenching rain — splash, splash — 
hastened on until I reached the entrance to 
St. James, where splendid horses and car- 
riages, and dazzling equipages, were rolling 
in and out. The Queen had already arrived 
from Buckingham Palace, and joined the gay 
throng in the Drawing-Room. Prompted 



QUEEN VICTORIA. 145 

still by woman's curiosity, I was not dis- 
heartened, but resolved to remain until she 
returned, in the meantime picturing to myself 
the brilliant assembly that thronged the rooms 
and .corridors. In fancy, I could see Her 
Majesty smiling and bowing graciously to 
each that had the honor of being presented 
to her. At last the scene and ceremony con- 
cluded, and about four o'clock a gun was 
fired, when the large entrance-gate, which 
had been so faithfully guarded by sentinels 
attired in red, striped with gold, flew open, and 
two ushers, dressed as officials, darted out on 
horseback, at full speed, followed by a state- 
coach, in which were Her Majesty's Ministers ; 
in the next were seated the veritable Queen 
and Prince Consort. The sides of the carriage 
were open, giving us a fine opportunity to see 
her full in the face, which entirely upset my 
idea of queenly dignity, as she was giggling 
and laughing just as we sometimes do when 
we can't help it, or don't wish to help it. Her 
features calmed down somewhat, however, 
wh'jn she saw that quite a crowd had gath- 
ered on that terribly rainy day to see her pass^ 
and to sav " God save the Queen!" 



146 LEAFLETS. 

Mj eyes were dazzled looking at the splen- 
did red carriages, adorned with gold, and cush- 
ioned with crimson-velvet, that followed in 
quick succession, filled with many of the 
finest specimens of English aristocracy, cov- 
ered with jewels and badges of honor. In the 
carriage next to the Queen's were several of 
the royal children, and in one which followed 
this was Leopold, King of the Belgians, 
who was then a guest at Buckingham, and 
the excellent Duchess of Kent, mother of 
Victoria, and sister of the King (a most 
honorable woman) ; and then came the car- 
riage in which was the Duchess of Suther- 
land, the famous and noblest of Euglish 
matrons. When the gorgeous retinue had 
passed, I could recall it only as a fairy -like 
enchantment, or poetic vision. But my mind 
centred on the fair, plump, pretty, loveable face 
of Victoria. Some of her own loving, loyal 
subjects had called her plain-looking, and 
many said she was homely ; but, in the 
glimpse I caught of her, I saw so much of the 
vivacity of youth and of womanly goodness 
animating a countenance beaming with intelli- 
gence, that I could but consider her beautifuL 



QUEEN VICTORIA. 14T 

She was dressed very plain, owing to the 
death of her aunt, which had occurred a few 
weeks previous. She was attired in a thin^ 
white material, with a black sash or scarf. 
Her hair, which is soft brown, was arranged 
tastefully, with a small coronet or tiara of 
diamonds encircling her brow, which sparkled 
like dew-drops in the sun. Prince Albert sat 
by her side, in a sort of soldier-like stateliness^ 
a splendid specimen of German nobility. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

LEAVING LONDON — TRIP TO EDINBURGH. 

June \bih. 
We bade adieu to London, and were seated 
in the cars, just as the faint shadows of even- 
ing began to reflect the glimmer of tapers 
here and there through the narrow streets, 
and were soon rolling after the " iron horse," 
through some of the loveliest scenery of Eng- 
land, on which we gazed with rapt admiration, 
until the fatigue of the day, and the long 
hours of the night, made us sigh for rest, 
when we commenced arranging our seats that 
we might be comfortable for the night ; but, 
alas ! '' our best concerted schemes were vain," 
for, in a few moments, the train stopped, and 
a woman, with a host of children, came 
crowding in, with baskets and boxes, big bun- 
dles and little bundles, and I cannot tell what 
all, until the apartment of the car was liter- 
ally jammed, vanishing all our blissful visions 



LEAVING LONDON. 149 

of the land of Nod, for now we were com- 
pelled to sit cramped up in one corner, per- 
fectly erect. For a while, however, in spite 
of our uncomfortable position, occasioned by 
this unexpected group, we amused our- 
selves watching this old dame dandling first 
one and then the other of these children 
into repose; when she could not succeed 
with this mode, she resorted to the ample and 
well-filled basket, crowded half way under 
the seat, which she would divest of sundry 
kinds of meats, such as chicken, bacon ; 
and last, but not least, the gammon-bone 
of a ham, from which, with the use of a knife 
and fork, she must have satisfied all aching 
voids within, but did not succeed as well in 
getting them asleep. You little brats, very 
wickedly thought 1, as they disturbed my 
quiet, but the next moment laughed until 
until I cried to see this female guardian ( for 
she could not have been their mother, ) drill 
these children by lullabys, then pet them, then 
feed, or rather stuff' them, then off" with her 
shoe and cuff* them, but without succeeding 
in either. The very next moment, with all 
possible coolness, she would take out a tin 



150 LEAFLETS. 

tea-pot, and drink from the spout. At last, 
tired and thoroughly vexed by such un- 
cultiv^ated government, such rebellious sub- 
jects, or as Tupper is pleased to call an infant 
specimen, "a well-spring of pleasure, a link 
between angels and men," the window being 
open, I turned from scenes within to views 
without, where, at every turn, nature was re- 
vealing a thousand charms heightened by the 
subdued twilight. I soon forgot that I was 
tired or compelled to sit painfully erect, and 
even the old grandmother and her noisy en- 
cumbrances, if not entirely forgotten, appear- 
ed to be blessings in disguise, to prevent my 
falling asleep, and thus losing sight of these 
beautiful panoramic views. At this hour all 
nature had hushed herself into rest and quiet ; 
the holy stars, heaven's stainless watchers, 
were twinkling on the brow of night, and 
anon fair luna made her appearance in the 
form of a silver cresent, hung amid sparkling 
diamonds, whose liquid light made night seem 
but as a milder day, for evening's gray twi- 
light had lingered into night, which so quick- 
ly glided into day, that it scarcely made a 



EDINBURGH. 151 

bridge between the first streak of morning's 
gay twilight. 

As the train paused at the stations, we could 
hear the birds utter their first little drowsy 
stir and chirp, mingling with the low of kine 
and the bleat of sheep, which soon blended 
with the general hum of early awakening 
life ; the stars, one by one, now closed their 
diamond eyes, and the pale cresent lovingly 
kissed the sceptre of the king of day, and 
disappeared as he rode up the eastern sky in 
his chariot of golden light, just as we were 
exchanging the green fields of merry England 
for "ye banks and braes o' bonnie" Scotland. 

\¥e arrived at Edinburgh, the Scottish me- 
tropolis — called by many authors "modern 
Athens" — about ten o'clock in the forenoon, 
and stopped at an hotel on Waterloo Place. 
Tired as we were, it was only a few hours 
before we were wandering among the graves 
of Calton Church-yard. In one corner we 
observed a circular-like tower, and on ap- 
proaching, found it to be a monument 
of David Hume, the historian. In nearly 
the centre of this yard, stands a grand 

obelisk, erected in 1845 to the memory 

13 



152 LEAFLETS. 

of Muir, Palmer, Gen aid, Skirving and Mar- 
garet, who were banished on account of the 
part they took in the cause of freedom i'n 
1794. Adjoining this yard, are the castellated 
walls of the old prison. From this cemetery 
we crossed over to Calton Hill, which is less 
than a quarter of a mile distant; on reaching 
the summit, which is over three hundred and 
fifty feet above the level of the sea, we gain- 
ed an extensive prospect of the surrounding 
country where 

" Traced like a map the landscape lies. 
In cultured beauty stretching wide,'' 

combining some of the richest elements^ of 
the sublime and lovely in nature, with a 
fine view of the city, built on elevated ridges, 
extending from east to west — the build- 
ings arranged in picturesque disorder. The 
old and the new towns are separated by ex- 
tensive pleasure gardens and grounds, which, 
as seen from here, seem to sw^eep round the 
base of the old castle. Around us are several 
elaborately designed monuments; the one 
most conspicuous is that to Nelson, '^ model- 
ed exactly after a Dutch skipper's spy-glass, 
or a butter churn," and one of chaste design to 



EDINBURGH. 153 

Dugald Stewart; but the one that claimed 
my undivided attention, was the twelve col- 
umns of the unfinished National Monument, 
which, when completed, was intended to com- 
memorate the heroes who fell at Waterloo. 
In design it was to be a reproduction of the 
Parthenon ; but, to the chagrin of every 
Scotchman, for the want of funds, it has 
proved a vain attempt to restore one of the 
"glories of the antique world." 

Edinburgh, the monumental city of Scot- 
land, is at the present day, in many respects, 
the most interesting city in the world. It is 
crowded with literary and benevolent insti- 
tutions. Printing and publishing are carried 
on on a large scale ; and there are also here a 
great number of Hospitals, amply endowed, 
and admirably conducted. Sir Walter Scott's 
works, in prose and poetical romance, full 
of life and vigor, have sent out into all 
the world so many thrilling voices, inviting 
hundreds of devoted worshipers to shrines 
he has consecrated amid charming hills and 
dales, where ivy-mantled towers lift their 
crumbling forms, and holy abbeys and deso- 
late castles hide themselves behind the green 



154 LEAFLETS. 

rubbish of ages. The Scotch, as a nation^ 
cherish his name and memory as a sort of 
patriot, who arose to redeem Scotland, by 
refreshing and embellishing the incidents of 
history, and to give their land a name other 
than that found in the long, dark, and fearful 
struggles of strifes and wars. In appreciation 
of his labors and usefulness, they have, on the 
north side of East Princes Street Gardens, 
erected to his memory the most magnificent 
monument I have ever seen ; the foundation 
was laid on the 15th of August, 1840, and 
completed in 1844. The style is purely 
Gothic, with four grand arches. The niches 
are filled with sculptured impersonations of 
the characters portrayed in the works of Sir 
Walter ; one is the Lady of the Lake stepping 
from the boat to the shore ; another the Last 
Minstrel, playing on his harp, together with 
many others. It is over two hundred feet 
high, with two hundred and eighty-seven 
steps conducting to the gallery at the top. 

In the interior, beneath the arched canopy 
of marble, is a colossal statue of the great 
author, represented sitting, gracefully draped 
in plaid, with one of the Waverleys in his 



HOLYROOD PALACE. 155 

hand, and attended by his favorite dog, Be- 
vis. The monument is worthy of such a 
great man — stately and magnificent in all its 
proportions — the entire cost being over fifteen 
thousand pounds. 

Not more than a hundred years ago was 
born, in a little thatched-roofed peasant's cot- 
tage, one whose native talents and extraordi- 
nary genius has given to bonnie Scotland the 
title which will never be forgotten — "the 
land of Burns." How my love for his sweet, 
soul-stirring effusions deepened and intensi- 
fied, as I stood beside the monument erected 
to his memory, and called to mind his 
" Highland Mary," the queen of his well- 
earned inheritance, and whom he cherished 
adoringly through all his checkered career. 

There is another name beside those of 
Scott and Burns, which at one time illumines, 
then darkens, now gladdens, now dims with 
tears of sorrow, the pages of Scottish history. 
It is the name of the beautiful and talented, 
but unfortunate, Mary Stuart; and Holyrood 
Palace is the monument to her memory in 
Scotland, where she spent most of her adven- 
turous, and even tempestuous lite. To-day 

18-^ 



156 LEAFLETS. 

we have visited this palace and abbey, and, 
as we passed from room to room, and through 
the cold halls, the memory of the lovely 
Mary seemed to linger, as a stray sun-beam, to 
gladden them. We hastened to Mary's rooms, 
which, we were informed, remain the same, 
or nearly so, as when occupied by the fair 
Queen. The aspect of the furniture is an- 
tique ; the quaint, old-fashioned, high-backed 
chairs are richly embroidered, but very much 
faded, and, to me, they appeared too frail me- 
morials to hold together for nearly three 
hundred years. The royal bedstead is railed 
in, lest unholv hands should reach out and 
take a forbidden rag from its discolored coun- 
terpane; the curtains, once crimson-damask, 
with green silk fringe and tassels, now dangle 
in tattered fragments from four high posts; 
but there is still retained a charm, when we 
remember that once her lovely form reposed 
upon it. The walls are covered with Gobelin 
tapestry, from the Paris manufactory, which 
is now so web-like and time-worn that it is 
dropping to pieces. In a little recess stands 
a table, on which remains a work-box, ex- 
quisitely embroidered by Mary's delicate, 



HOLYROOD PALACE. 15T 

queenly hands. I joined with a French lady 
in our party, who, when she looked at and 
admired it, exclaimed, ''ah ! qu'elle est jolie!'^ 
Here is, also, a curiously constructed basket^ 
which palace tradition informed us was used 
by the Queen-Mother to contain the infant 
wardrobe of James the Sixth, of Scotland, 
and that it was presented hy Queen Eliza-^ 
beth to Mary. We looked into the mirror 
that hundreds of years ago so often gave 
back the reflection of her fair face. But 
how my blood went throbbing through my 
veins, as I entered the little boudoir where 
the Duchess of Argyle and the youthful, fair- 
faced Italian, Rizzio, were quietly supping 
with the Queen on that fatal night, when 
Lord Darnley and his accomplices entered to 
perpetrate their secret plans of assassination. 
We saw the small door, and looked down the 
private stairway, through which these des- 
perate demons crept, stealthily, into these 
apartments, where the horrible scene ensued. 
When the poor Italian was aware that his life 
was aimed at, he fled, child-like, for protec- 
tion, behind the Queen, who, in attempting to 
rescue him, was rudely pushed aside by the 



158 LEAFLETS. 

murderers; they seized him, and dragged 
him through her bed room to the head of the 
stairs, where they were not satisfied until 
thej had stabbed him over forty times, each 
wound being sufficient to take life, and where 
the discolored spot on the floor, until this day, 
indelibly records the horrible tragedy. How 
pitiful must have been the cries and prayers 
of the Queen, at the time, for his life ; and 
how fearfully must have rung through these 
halls her angry vow of vengeance and re- 
venge when she knew that he was dead. It 
is said that the little room was never again 
occupied by the Queen, or any one else. On 
the table now lie the armor of Lord Ruthven, 
his boots, gauntlets, and iron breast-plate, 
worn at the time of the assassination. What 
a change ! — from a little supping board, loaded 
with dainty luxuries, such as queens have 
placed before them, to the vile garments 
stained with the blood of the innocent. 

After passing through Lord Darnley's sleep- 
ing apartments, and the state-rooms and gal- 
leries, we entered the abbey, founded in the 
eleventh century, by David the First. A part 
of the high altar has withstood the ravages of 



HOLYROOD ABBEY. 159 

the uncourtly hand of time, and remains un-^ 
der an arched window of great beauty, around 
which the creeping ivy has twined its loving 
tendrils. It was before this altar that Mary 
Queen of Scots, stood in that unfortunate 
hour when married to Lord Darnley. This 
palace has for centuries been the residence of 
Scottish royalty, and the abbey, their burial- 
place, which is still beautiful amid its ruin. 
The exterior of the palace most strikingly 
resembles a military fortress. The front is 
flanked by double castelated towers. The 
whole being built in a quadrangle form, gives 
a court-yard of ninety feet square, and, as a 
whole, quite unlike any other castle I have 
seen. Wishing to pursue the history of Mary 
Queen of Scots, as far as can be traced in the 
castles and palaces once occupied by her, we 
left Holyrood Abbey, and hastened to the old 
castle, situated on a precipitous rocky emi- 
nence, nearly four hundred feet high. Its 
origin dates far back in the past, when it 
formed the nucleus around which Edinburgh, 
in its childhood, arose. It always has been^ 
and still is, an extensive military fortress,, 
with, at present, ample accommodations for 



160 LEAFLETS. 

two thousand soldiers, and an armory of thir- 
ty thousand stand of arms. Within this an- 
cient palace, the pious Queen Margaret died, 
in 1093. The beautiful little Norman Chapel, 
built by her, in which she worshiped, still re- 
mains, the pride of the castle, as it is a gem 
and an architectural relic. A.s we proceeded 
to the crown-room, we glanced into the 
gloomy prisons, where royalty, in other days, 
was confined. The regalia consists of a crown, 
sceptre, and sword, which lie on a table, be- 
neath a crimson canopy, guarded by two 
wardens, whose business it is to show them 
to visitors. How many destinies of men and 
nations have these insignias of Scottish roy- 
alty controlled'] In the hand of the Bruces, 
the sceptre was at one period a rod of power ; 
at another time, a broken reed. The sword 
was an instrument of vengeance to James the 
First ; and the gorgeous crown changed into 
a chaplet of thorns, pressing painfully deep 
into the fair brow of Mary Stuart, from which 
it was taken and placed upon the head of her 
infant son, where it shone, a diadem of glory. 
To me, a shade of melancholy seemed to hang 
over every relic retained in the apartments 



EDINBURGH CASTLE. 161 

occupied by the beautiful Queen at such an 
eventful period in her life. In one of these 
rooms, her only son, afterward James the 
Sixth, was born. With what solicitude the 
queen-mother must have watched his little 
barque, as it began to toss on the troubled and 
even tempestuous sea of a nation wrought up 
to the fearful storm of strife. Torn from his 
mother's bosom when only eight days old, 
and, to escape murderous pursuers, let down 
in a tiny basket, over the rocky eminence on 
which the castle is built, the infant King 
was carried to Stirling Castle, and baptized 
in the Protestant faith bv Knox. In this room 
was a seat made from a rose tree, said to have 
been planted by her queenly hand. On every- 
thing I could see traced the mysterious hand- 
writing of " glory departed." And in her his- 
tory it appears that either fate or Providence 
designed her for reverses, misfortune and suf- 
fering, from her childhood. She was born in 
the Palace of Linlithgow, in 1542. Her 
father, James the Fifth, died when she was 
eight days old, leaving the infant Mary sole 
heiress of his fortunes and his crown. The 
Earl of Arren was appointed governor of the 



162 LEAFLETS. 

kingdom, and guardian of the young Queen, 
who was to remain with her mother, m the 
royal palace. A disturbance ensued between 
the earl and King Henry the Eighth, of Eng- 
land. The king greatly desired the hand of 
the princess for his son, Edward, having in 
his mind the union of the two crowns there- 
by. At one time encouraged by the earl, 
then refused, the result of the latter was a 
great battle, which was fought at a place 
called Musselburgh, where the Scots were de- 
feated, compelling the mother of Mary to flee 
with the young child to the Island of Inche- 
mahon, where the little Queen, with her four 
Marys as companions, were in banishment for 
several years. 

At the age of six years, her mother, 
who was herself a French Princess, managed 
to escape with her to France, where Mary was 
splendidly educated in a Convent, with the 
daughters of the nobility; her literary acquire- 
ments were rapid and wonderful in their 
development. She understood the French, 
Spanish, and Italian tongues almost, if not 
quite to perfection, at a very early age ; she 
spoke the Latin with ease and elegance. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 163 

Her taste for poetry and music, and accom- 
plishments of beauty, wit, and learning, all 
combined to make her extravagantly admired 
by the French Court. At the age of sixteen, 
she was married to the son of the King of 
France, and at the death of his father, which 
occurred soon after their marriage, he was 
crowned Francis the Second, and Mary his 
beautiful Queen. But, alas ! only six months 
after his accession to the throne, he died. 
They were devotedly attached, and Mary 
mourned deeply for him. The Scots insist- 
ed on her return to her native land, that she 
might be crowned their rightful Sovereign. 
She bade adieu to France very reluctantly, 
and even after she had sailed, remained on deck 
gazing on the shores of "her beloved France" 
weeping like a child. On arriving in Scotland, 
she was welcomed with so much enthusiasm 
by her subjects, and crowned Queen with so 
many honors, that she soon forgot her sorrows 
at leaving France. Lord Darnley was proposed 
as her husband, and charmed by his youth 
and beauty, she consented to marry him ; 
but the union was not a happy one, as her life 
afterward proved to be a series of ill-fated 

14 



164 LEAFLETS. 

circumtances. Darnley treated her cruelly, 
causing the death of her private Italian Sec- 
retary and favorite musician, after which she 
no longer attempted to conceal her hatred for 
him. Even the birth of her son, under these 
trying circumstances, failed to reconcile them 
to each other. While at Stirling Castle, 
Darnley was seized with disease,which threat- 
ened his life, and the Queen, forgetting for the 
moment, his unkindness, visited him, and 
among her acts of affection, she placed a 
ring on his hand and accompanied him to a 
house called Kirk of Field, which was soon 
after blown up by gunpowder, and his shatter- 
ed remains found the next day in an adja- 
cent field. Bothwell, a powerful nobleman, 
who had shown great attachment for the 
Queen, and her cause, was accused of the mur- 
der, and public opinion even suspected the 
Queen as being accessory to it, and his being 
retained in her intimacy only confirmed the 
suspicion. They were married in about three 
months after, which, as might , be expected, 
incurred the indignation of the people. Both- 
w^ell, assuming the power of the throne, so 
disturbed and agitated the religion, politics. 



MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS. 165 

and general peace of the nation, that war en- 
sued, and being defeated, was compelled to fly, 
and the Queen was imprisoned at Lochleven. 
After eleven month's confinement, she escap- 
ed, when many of her loyal subjects rallied 
around her, hoping to be able to reinstate her ; 
but Murry, an illegitimate brother of hers, had 
been declared regent, who came against her 
with a strong force, and as her army consisted 
only of inexperienced soldiers, who were 
easily defeated; her life was only saved by 
traveling sixty miles on horseback, in one 
day. She now wrote to Elizabeth of England, 
who assumed to condole with her, and prom- 
ised her protection ; but, as soon as she was in 
her power, the guise of affection was removed, 
and her old jealousy and enmity manifested 
by confining her in prison without seeing her, 
where she remained for nineteen years, when 
she was condemned to be beheaded, having 
been accused of being engaged in a con- 
spiracy against Elizabeth. Becoming weary 
of a life involving only misfortune and dis- 
appointment, she met this sentence, it is said, 
with dignity and calmness, and when a. faith- 
ful old servant, the steward of her household, 



166 LEAFLETS. 

saw her led out for execution, he threw him- 
self on his knees before her, wringing his 
hands, exclaiming: ''Ah, madam! unhappy 
me ! Avas ever man on earth the bearer of such 
sorrow as I shall be, when T repeat that my 
good and gracious Queen was beheaded in 
England ! " Here his grief impeded his utter- 
ance, and Mary replied: ''Good Melville, cease 
to lament, thou hast rather cause to joy than 
mourn; for thou shalt see the end of Mary 
Stuart's troubles. Know that this world is 
but vanity, subject to more sorrow than an 
ocean of tears can bewail." She soon after = 
kneeled on the scaffold, and praying for her 
enemies, submitted to her death, which 
occurred in Fotheringay Castle, February 
8th, 1587. 

At the death oi Elizabeth, Mfiry was 
avenged by her son, James the Sixth, uniting 
the crowns of England and Scotland, when 
he caused the remains of his mother to be 
interred in Westminster Abbey, and there 
erected a magnificent monument to her mem- 
ory ; and at his death, his remains were placed 
by her side. Many authors, even at the pres- 
ent day, differ in regard to the moral char- 



ST. GILES' CATHEDRAL. 167 

acter of this ill-fated queen. The noble Sir 
Walter Scott refused to pronounce her guilty 
of the charges brought against her, and as- 
serts that her enemies were paid to slander 
her. Mrs. Hale, in her ^'Woman's Record," 
says of her: " There never has been but one 
opinion as to her charms as a woman, or the 
variety of her accomplishments," and adds, 
"that such were the fascinations of her per- 
son and mind, that few could be placed under 
their influence without becoming convinced 
of her innocence of all the charges against 
her." In the little room in the old castle, 
where her only son first opened his eyes to 
the light of day, I purchased an engraving 
copied from an original painting of her, which 
lies before me, and all that I can say is in 
the language of another : 

"If to her lot some human errors fall, • 

Look to her face, and you'll forget them all." 

Leaving the castle, we proceeded down 
what is called the "Lawn Market," and soon 
reached St. Giles' Cathedral, one of the Es- 
tablished Churches of Scotland, which is 
Presbyterian. It is Gothic in architecture, 

and very large ; and, although somewhat mod- 

14* 



168 LEAFLETS. 

ernized, it still bears marks of antiquity. 
Two old women, dressed in genuine Scottish 
costume, met us at the entrance, and, acting 
as wardens, they commenced to show us the 
Cathedral, and allowed us to stand in the same 
pulpit where John Knox, the intrepid eccle- 
siastical reformer, thundered his anathemas 
against the Church of Rome. At one time, 
when preaching to the nobility, who have an 
elegant canopied seat in the gallery, fronting 
the pulpit, his text were these words, "Chil- 
dren shall rule princes." Queen Mary, it is 
said, wept like a child as she listened to 
Divine truth. A nobleman, witnessing her 
tears, cried out to the preacher, "Are you not 
ashamed to make your Queen weep?" to which 
Knox replied, "I have no pleasure in her 
tears; but I must preach what my Master 
holds me to." Leaving the Cathedral, we 
gave the old ladies a gratuity, one of whom 
pronounced her blessing upon us, and, following 
us into the Parliament Square, on the north- 
ern side of the Cathedral, pointed us to an 
equestrian statue of Charles the Second, which 
is commanding in appearance. Only a few 
steps from the statue, she very reverentially 



RESIDENCE OF KNOX. 169 

pointed to several dark stones in the pavement^ 
saying, "Here lies the remains of the great^ 
est of preachers: kings, queens and lords 
have proud monuments; but here, unknown, 
except by these few stones, is the grave of 
John Knox !" Passing down the street, we 
visited the house where he lived for at least 
twelve years. It is a fine specimen of a 
dwelling-house of the sixteenth century. 
Over the door is this inscription, placed there 
by his own hands, and still remaining, "Lufe. 
G(jd. above al. and. your, nichbour. as. your. 
self." On a bracket is a rudely sculptured 
e^gy, representing the great reformer in the 
attitude of addressing the populace. Look- 
ing from this point down the thronged 
street, upon the motly crowd of bare-footed 
and half-naked children, bare-headed and 
slovenly women, the coarse and ugly features 
and tattered garments of the men, as they 
huddled together in groups, selling their pro- 
duce in the open streets, or sallying forth with 
all kinds of vegetables and meats in their 
hands, aprons, caps and hats, which they had 
purchased to carry home. I wondered why 
a modern Knox was not raised up to preach 



170 LEAFLETS. 

to them in these latter days, and to our surprise 
as we turned into another street, there was a 
man preaching in the open air, with a crowd 
around him. After going to the house occu- 
pied by Ohver Cromwell, during his stay in 
Edinburgh; also the house where the mother 
of the poet Drummond, of Hawthornden lived, 
and many places where the scenes were laid 
in Sir Walter Scott's stories. We returned to 
our Hotel, where, reflecting on all we had 
seen, a week seemed to be crowded into one 
day. 



CHAPTER XIY. 

GREEN CEMETERY — ARTHUR'S SEAT— MELROSE ATIBET 
— DRYBURGH AR B E Y— A BBO TSFOR D . 

June 17 th. 
It was a lovely Sabbath morning, and the 
services at St. Giles' Cathedral we found very 
interesting. But as in the afternoon, none of 
the churches were open for religious exer- 
cises, we walked out to the Green Cemetery. 
For at least half a mile before reaching the 
grounds, we followed an avenue, skirted on 
either side by a hawthorn hedge, which grew 
quite above our heads, imparting a most de- 
lightful air of seclusion. I am sure I never 
entered a cemetery so bright and sunny. 
The graves appeared like so many little 
blooming gardens, covered with roses, violets, 
and forget-me-nots. The warm sunshine 
seemed lovingly to drain the tear-cup, diffus- 
ing only smiles and bright hopes, and pros- 
pects oF an eternal day. 



172 LEAFLETS. 

On one side of the ground, we found a plain 
marble tablet, inserted in the wall, with an 
iron railing in front, enclosing the grave ; on 
the marble we read this simple inscription : 

THOMAS CHALMERS, D.D., L.L.D., 
Bora, March 17, 1780. 

I) 1 E U , M A Y 3 1 , 1 8 4 7 . 

A few rods from the grave of Chalmers, on 
a tablet of dark marble, we read another in- 
teresting inscription : 

HUGH MILLER, 

tAeD, 24th DECEMBER, 1856, 

Aged 54 Years. 

These two great men acted in different 
spheres; yet how much the world is indebted 
to both. 

At this season of the year, the day dawns 
in Scotland about three o'clock, and having 
risen early to make the ascent of Arthur's 
Seat — a most curious and interesting mountain 
— we took this opportunity to walk through 
many of the streets, delightful pleasure 
grounds, and public gardens, while yet the 
great city was slumbering. It was an hour 
of reflection; how many, thought I, are all 
around us locked in the embrace of unconscious 



Arthur's seat. 173 

sleep, which is the emblem of death. I think 
we saw but one person in our perambulations, 
and I presume he was the morning watch. 
Turning our laces toward Holyrood, in a few 
moments its gray walls rose up before us. 
Then crossing the Queen's Park, and taking the 
winding foot-path, commenced our ascent of 
the famous Arthur's Seat. It was not long be- 
fore we reached an old ruin, known as St. An- 
thony's Chapel, standing near, if not on the 
spot, where Scott, in his " Heart of Mid Lothi- 
an," speaks of Jeanie Dean's meeting the 
ruffian Robertson. I was constantly gather- 
ing different varieties of the tiny flowers that 
grew in such profusion all over the mountain 
sides, until we reached the proud summit, 
which rises eight hundred and twenty feet 
above the level of the sea. 

As far the eye could reach, the whole coun- 
try, of wondrous beauty, seemed interlaced 
with streams, like little silver threads dotted 
with crystal lakes, and adorned with parks. 
Just below us lay the city, dimmed with the 
smoke that was creeping up slowly from un- 
numbered chimneys, while the sounds of new- 
ly awakening life and industry filled the 



174 ' LEAFLETS. 

morning air. Remaining there long enough 
to enjoy a glorious sun-rise, we commenced to 
descend, taking the wild path which extends 
along the high belt of semi-circular rocks, 
called the Sallisburv Crags, sloping down 
into the glen, where we suddenly came in 
contact with a target company, whose red flags 
were displayed in every direction; not wish- 
ing to be detained, we consulted together a 
moment, and resolved to proceed cautiously, 
which, in attempting to do, we heard a voice 
come sounding up the hill-sides, ^' out of the 
way there, or you'll get shot." For a moment 
we were in a most horrible dilemma, as we 
were too weary to return, and for our lives 
we dare not stand still. Seized by the peril 
of the moment, we took to our heels, as is 
sometimes rudely said, and I only wish you 
could have seen us running like deer, bound- 
ing like a top, tumbling like logs, with every 
motion in double-quick time, until we reached 
the base of the mountain in safety, and out of 
danger, where, after catching our breaths, we 
enjoyed a good hearty laugh. One might 
readily imagine we relished our breakfast 
most delightfully, on arriving at our Hotel. 



MELROSE ABBEY. 175 

At twelve o'clock of the same day we took 
the train for Melrose, a distance of thirty- 
seven miles from Edinburgh, were we arrived 
at four o'clock P. M. The chief attraction of 
the village is the celebrated Abbey, and the 
object of our pilgrimage. It is considered 
the finest and most beautiful old ruin in all 
the United Kingdom, and the best remaining 
specimen of Gothic architecture. Much has 
been written, both in verse and prose, of "fair 
Melrose," and I hardly ventured to anticipate 
the effect the first sight might produce upon 
my mind, much less presume to add another 
line to what has already been written. En- 
tering the warden's gate, in a moment before 
us uprose the venerable Abbey, made up of 
columns, arches, buttresses, and canopied 
niches filled with sculptured figures, and 
quaint forms of animals and birds on carved 
brackets, adorned with flowers, leaves, twigs, 
ferns, acorns, cones, and vines, so artistically 
chiseled, that a straw might penetrate the 
interstices. The nave and chancel are entire- 
ly roofless, and hundreds of swallows and 
rooks were chirping and twittering to each 

other while feeding their young, or repairing 

15 



176 LEAFLETS. 

their nests among the rubbish and bright 
yellow wall-flowers. Century after century 
has been slowly crumbling these magnificent 
walls, and eaten out many irregular shapes 
and niches; but nature in all her kindliness 
has taken this beautiful ruin to her heart, 
shielding it from decay by a heavy green 
mantle of ivy thrown gracefully over it, 
which heightens, rather than destroys its 
beauty. 

Within the abbey are the remains of many 
a king, gallant warrior, and venerable priest. 
Near the spot where the high altar once stood, 
is a slab of dark marble, in which is imbedded 
petrified shells, and under it is supposed to 
rest the dust of Alexander the Second. I 
gathered some little leaves and flowers, grow- 
ing on the spot where was deposited the heart 
of the brave Robert Bruce, it having been 
buried here after an unsuccessful attempt had 
been made by Douglas to carry it to the Holy 
Land. After spending several hours, we re- 
turned to our hotel, very near by, to 
gain our next view of the Abbey by the pale 
moonlight, which adds so many charms to the 
scene. 



DRYBURGH ABBEY. 177 

June 19 th 
This is the anniversary of our wedding-day. 
The ardor of our youthful affections has 
passed the ordeal of ^ve years of life's reali- 
ties. But few of the snows of old Winter 
have drifted upon our pathway, while much 
of sunshine and happiness have been ours 
richly to enjoy. Taking an early breakfast, 
we started for Dryburgh Abbey, the burial- 
place of Sir Walter Scott. Wishing to enjoy 
a morning-walk, we left the train at a small 
village a mile or two from the Abbey, just as 
the sun was saying good morning to earth. 
Passing through one of the narrow streets, a 
little bonnie lassie, yet m her night-gown, di- 
rected us to the path we were to take, which 
followed a little streamlet that babbled and 
danced along, seeming of little use, except to 
add sweet notes to nature's orchestra, vocal 
with the songs of the birds, warbling in grove 
and dell. 

There is so much of unrestrained nature in 
a skipping, laughing rill, that I love to join 
in its mirth, without any of that sickly senti- 
mentality which sits pensively for hpurs on 



178 LEAFLETS. 

the margin of a river to watch the ''silver 



moon." 



The stream we were following was to 
guide us to the Abbey, being a tributary 
to the Tweed, flowing fast by the conse- 
crated shrine. But our path, for a time di- 
verging, we entered a hill-side forest, where 
the ivy and cypress- vines entwined their long 
tendrils lovingly around the olden oaks, just 
as little children cling to their grandsires. 
The pearly dew-dr(^ps were glistening and 
trembling on every blade of gras.s; the vio- 
lets, forget-me-nots, and spring beauties, flo- 
ra's delicate and fair children, which, an hour 
ago, were fast asleep, now began to open 
their eyes to the rays of the morning sun^ 
as they came straggling through the trees. 
Our narrow path now became rough, leading 
along projecting rocky cliffs, overhanging the 
water's edge ; then down again among the 
pebbles on the shore, where we inhaled the 
cooling breeze as it danced over the waters, 
keeping time to the music of invisible feet. 
Thus it is, thought I, with the " stream of 
life ;" mortals do not always glide down, calmy 
and peacefully, until they land triumphantly 



DRYBURGH ABBEY. 179 

on the shores of immortality. At times, they 
have to leave their little barque on the placid 
stream, and climb for awhile over the rugged 
rocks and rough mountain-sides of life. List- 
enino; a moment, I heard a familiar voice in 
advance of me call out to hasten on. I said 
I might as well, once for all, give up keeping 

step with Mr. N- , for he will always go 

before me. At this moment I was lingering 
to watch the butter-cups and daisies, as they 
unfolded their thin petals, fragrant with the 
breath of morning, and kissing in the dew- 
drops — the tears night had been weeping. I 
was also intepreting their language — a purer, 
holier, never found a translation. To me, 

" Plowers are the alphabet of angels, 
Wliereby they write on hills and dales mysterious truths.'" 

I tread the soil lightly, for fear of crushing 
one of these children of the dust. But my 
noble better half admires and studies the 
older, larger members of this great family — 
the sturdy oak, the proud cedars of Lebanon, 
the thickly populated forests, that have en- 
dured the blasts of ^olus for an hundred 
years. I love the smooth pebbles that so ex- 
quisitely pave the pathway of the stream, 

15^ 



180 LEAFLETS. 

or washed on the water's edge, keeping time 
with the music of the waves, which is as the 
sweet, gentle voices of little children at even- 
tide. He loves to decipher the hieroglyphics 
of nature on rough and rugged rocks that rear 
their lofty heads high in the air, in '' wild, fan- 
tastic forms." I admire the dew-drop, that 
gathers strength as it advances, until able to 
overcome the impediments of the stern moun- 
tain-side, marks out its own silvery course 
through the smiling valley and shaded wood- 
land, which nature's loving student declares 
'' a thing of beauty — a joy forever." He ad- 
mires the majestic river, that deepens, and 
widens, and swells, until it bears to the surg- 
ing bosom of the mighty ocean the commerce 
of the world; or the cataract that, for miles, 
shuts out every other sound in nature by its 
deafening roar. I am charmed with the '^ still 
small voices" in nature. He listens and is 
charmed with the clashing thunderbolt, as it 
rends the azure vault of heaven. The majestic 
river; the mighty ocean; the thundering cata- 
ract ; the towering mountain ; the vast, dense 
forest; the broad, expansive earth, with the 
fullness thereof, f ^rm the grand temple in 



DRYBURGH ABBEY. 181 

which he worships, and at whose altars he bows 
— looking from ''nature up to nature's God.'^ 
I enter the inner temple for worship, after 
Elijah's wind rending the mountains and 
breaking the rocks ; after the earthquake and 
fire have passed away, when is heard only the 
"still small voice" whispering to the humble 
soul paying its loving tribute to the God of 
nature. But, as the incense of our worship 
ascends to our Creator — the great God of the 
universe, the exultant notes of both strains^ 
harmoniously blend in one " our Father made 
them all!" 

The crystal waters of the Tweed glided by 
us as we waited on the shore a few momenta 
for a boy, who came and rowed us over the 
river in a little boat, landing us within ten 
minutes' walk of the Abbey. At the lodge, 
the custodian was a bonnie lady, who accom- 
panied us to show us the ruins, deeply im- 
bosomed in noble trees, some of them the 
grandest old yew-trees I ever saw. We se- 
cured some twigs from one as old as the 
Abbey, which was founded by pious David the 
First, in 1150. This, together with nearly all 
the Abbeys of Southern Scotland, was built by 



182 ^ LEAFLETS. 

him, as an evidence of his gratitude for the 
miraculous preservation of his life, when at- 
tacked by a wild stag, while hunting. Being 
unable to defend himself, it is related that a 
cross suddenly descended from heaven into 
his hand. The stag, seeing it, fled at once in 
dismay. In a dream, afterward, he received 
a mandate from heaven to go on and found 
these magnificent places of worship, which 
he did, almost to the beggary of his kingdom. 
Yet these Abbeys could not always have been 
the holiest of places ; for here, in this one, 
we saw, in a dungeon, a most horrible arrange- 
ment for torture — a hole cut in the solid stone, 
into which the prisoner's hand was thrust, 
and wedged in with a wooden mallet, then 
was again chained to the wall. This hole is 
placed so low that the prisoner could neither 
stand or lie down, but only kneel. The prin- 
cipal remains of the building are the western 
gable of the nave of the Church, the end of 
the transept, part of the choir, and a portion 
of the domestic buildings ; also St. Catherine's 
circular window, twelve feet in diameter, 
beautifully radiated, and gorgeously encircled 
with ivv. The western door of the Church is 



DRYBURGH ABBEY. 18S 

built like a Roman arch, and ornamented with 
roses. St. Mary's aisle is by far the most 
beautiful part of the ruins; and all along 
through it are now growing evergreen trees ^ 
and a few cedars from Lebanon. As we enter, 
at the right of this aisle, is the tomb of Sir 
Walter Scott, who was buried here September 
26th, 1832, among the graves of his ancestors, 
^ n one side of his tomb is that of his wife;, 
on the other, his eldest son. The tomb is 
plain and simple, sheltered by this immense 
structure — broken down, desolate, and lonely 
in the extreme. Yet to me this consecrated 
spot appeared invested with a reverential 
pleasure, making it religiously lovely. As a 
whole, when we consider his life, and the 
closing up of his eventful career, perhaps 
there is no spot in the wide world more befit- 
ting for the last resting-place of the patriarch 
poet. Let the moss grow, and the ivy creep 
over the mouldering walls ; let the winds sigh 
through these broken arches, and whisper 
among the twigs of the cedars and evergreens,, 
or sweep down these desolate aisles ; let the 
devoted pilgrims gather the roses growing 
near his grave, as mementos sacred to his 



184 LEAFLETS. 

memory — the immortal Sir Walter Scott 
sleeps well ! 

Leaving Dryburgh, we returned to Melrose, 
and, taking a carriage, we rode to Abbotsford, 
a distance of some three miles. It is also 
delightfully situated on the banks of the 
Tweed. On arriving at the family residence 
of Scott, our coachman paused at the garden 
entrance. The gardener, answering to the 
bell, conducted us first through the beautiful 
grounds, where the flowers were in full bloom, 
and the vegetables rich in abundance. Here 
and there we observed quaint and curious 
fragments of art, incorporated in the walls or 
introduced in arbors for flowers, in a style 
characteristic of the man who placed them 
there. The parks and lawns, overlooking the 
smiling waters of the Tweed, are romantic 
and lovely, commanding fine views. It was 
here Sir Walter walked, and talked, and 
studied, read, thought, and wrote ; and in 
this house lived and died. The interior of 
the building is in wonderful keeping with the 
genius and taste of the master-mind who ar- 
ranged every apartment. The entrance-room 
is lighted with stained glass, and hung with 



ABB0T8F0RD. 185 

arms of almost every description, and adorned 
with thousands of curiosities. Among them 
all, naturally enough, we examined with in- 
terest the pistols used by Napoleon the First, 
and the gun owned hy the adventurous Rob 
Roy. The drawing-room, dining-room, and 
parlors are filled with choice relics and pres- 
ents of great value, and the walls hung with 
family portraits and pictures, by the best art-* 
ists. These were all objects of interest to 
look at ; but it afforded us greater pleasure to 
be in his library, whose walls are covered with 
his books, and to sit at the table at which he 
wrote, handle the peii and inkstand he used, 
and examine the books lying on the table as 
he left them, thirt}^ years ago. 1 lingered 
here, if, perchance, one single breath of his 
inspiration might still laden the air. The 
notes of that lyre thai thrilled the world have 
died away, but I seemed to hear their faint 
vibrations still. In a small room adjoining 
the library are the clothes last worn by him, 
and the cane that supported his enfeebled 
and tottering frame — sacred relics these — at 
which thousands will look mournfully, and 
sigh that Scott was ever born to die. 



CHAPTER XY. 

JEDB^URGH ABBEY — KELSO ABBEY — ROSLIN CHAPEL- 
NORTHERN SCOTLAND. 

* June 15th. 

Leaving Melrose, we took the train for, and 
arrived at, Jedburgh late in the evening, and, 
as the Abbey was the principal object of at- 
traction in this little town, we resolved to see 
it that night, and thus be ready to leave early 
the next morning. At that late hour, we had 
some difficulty in finding the warden. We 
succeeded, however, in seeing him, and en- 
tered by moonlight, which was exceedingly 
bright. The traces of the flames on these 
ruined walls, caused by a conflagration, when 
besieged, in the times of Edward the Third, 
are still visible, and added to the blackness 
and gloom of viewing it at night. We wan- 
dered a little time among the old tombs in the 
yard surrounding the abbey, with the moon 
for our lamp, hung in the vaulted heavens, 



JEDBURGH ABBEY. 187 

the scene was grand and imposing. Over 
the intersection of the nave and transept 
rises a massive square tower, with irregular 
turrets, and belfry, one hundred feet high 
from the top, our guide assured us, was a 
charming view by moonlight of the town, 
and the rich and productive soil of the sur- 
rounding country, I was too weary to ascend, 
but unwilling to prevent Mr. N — — , con- 
sented to remain alone in the part rudely 
fitted up with seats for a parish Church. The 
darkness would have been total had not the 
faint rays of the moon struggled through 
the stained glass. The stillness and gloom 
was awful: my own breathing seemed to 
bring back an echo in this great sarcophagus, 
filled with the inscriptions of the glory of its 
dead old abbots, earls, and Augustine friars, 
and surrounded with but little of the sacred 
ness that 

"In dim cathedrals, dark with vaulted abloom; 
Wliat holy awe invests the silent tomb!" 

Early next morning, we visited the house 

occupied by Mary Queen of Scots during the 

violent attack of fever that followed the long 

ride of nearly sixty miles in one day, to the 

16 



188 LEAFLETS. 

peril of her life, at the period in her history 
when the storm-cloud hung so fearfully over 
her. Taking the train, we arrived at Kelso, 
in time for breakfast, after which we visited 
the Abbey, standing out alone in its grandeur, 
said to be the first-born of King David's pious 
zeal. Few, if any of the abbeys of Scotland 
have suffered more from invasion, plunder, 
war, or flames, than this ; and still it towers 
up, in lofty proportions, a magnificent ivy- 
clad ruin. About a mile from this little town 
is Floors' Palace, the residence of the Duke 
of Roxburgh, and, without doubt, the finest 
baronial edifice in Scotland. In its extensive 
park is still pointed out the holly-bush mark- 
ing the spot where James the Second was 
killed by the bursting of a cannon, at the 
time the castle was besieged, in 1460. 

Again taking the cars, and puffing through 
a pretty bit of country, we reached Roslin 
Castle, a mouldering ruin, with its triple tier 
of vaults, still clinging together, on a high 
rock, looking down into the wildest glen I 
have seen in Scotland. The Esk, almost hid 
from sight in the dark ravine below, finds its 
course through tangled willows and matted 



m 



- ROSLIN CHAPEL. 189 

vines. The origin of the castle is involved in 
obscurity, except that a proud family, by the 
name of St. Clair, once lived there, surrounded 
by a wealthy and gay court. Passing the 
bridge, which seems to swing over the chasm, 
we continued our ramble, clambering amidst 
the uneven surfaci* of the grounds for hours, 
delighted with the wildness of the scenery, 
where nature, in her happiest moments, has 
so admirably combined the sublime and beauti- 
ful in endless variety. We stopped at a rus- 
tic, but neat little hotel, and ordered dinner. 
The landlord, a genuine Scotchman, boasted 
of being a descendant of the grand lairds of 
the castle, but without any knowledge of their 
genealogy. After doing justice to our plain, 
Scotish dinner, we resumed our walk in search 
of Roslin Chapel, which we found b}^ no 
means a ruin, as anticipated, but the most 
perfect specimen of florid architecture in the 
world. It was built four hundred years ago, 
and, by constant repairs, it retains its original 
appearance. The ceilings, architraves, pillars, 
and capitals are loaded with sculpture, giving 
the interior the appearance of a sculptured 
gallery. In one of the small chapels, accord- 



190 LEAFLETS. 

ing to tradition, the lovely Rosabelle was 
christened, and there ray beloved '4aird'^ 
placing his hand on my head, gave the prefix 
of "Ev" to my name, which made me Evan- 
geline. The most interesting object within 
the chapel is the '"Prentice's Pillar," exquis- 
itely sculptured, with wreaths of flowers and 
foliage twisted spirally around it. The his- 
tory connected with this pillar is as romantic 
as morally instructive. The master-ma- 
son, being unable to complete this column 
from the designs he had, w^ent to Rome to 
study a similar one there. During his absence, 
his apprentice executed this beautifully-fluted 
column. On his return, surprised at the skill, 
and admiring the genius the youth had dis- 
played, yet envious of his fame — fearing it 
might supercede his own — in the moment of 
anger, he struck the apprentice dead on the 
spot with a mallet he held in his hand. 
That night we bade adieu to 

*' Roslin's towers and braes sae bonnie, 
Craigs and waters, woods and glen, 
Roslin's banks unpeer'd by ony," 

and returning to Edinburgh, the next day we 
started on our trip for the Highlands and Lochs 



DUNFERMLINE ABBEY. 191 

of northern Scotland. It was nearly sun- 
down when we reached Dunfermlinej and on 
entering town, was surprised to find the stores 
and shops closed at that early hour, and the 
streets as quiet as the Sabbath day, but on in- 
quiry, learned that it was an annual fast-day. 
The old iibbey standing near the new Church, 
together form an immense pile of architec- 
ture^ and are hallowed by being the resting 
place of eight kings, five queens, six princes, 
and two princesses. Here is buried the body 
of King Robert the Bruce ; his heart is in- 
terred in Melrose Abbey, and it is said the 
Holy Father sent his soul to heaven. The 
grounds and the palace, once so beautful, now 
lie neglected, and rooks, a species of the crow, 
build their nests there. I gathered some ivy 
clinging to the crumbling frame-work of a 
window which illumined the room where 
Charles the First was born. The trees, old 
and stately, spread their branches over these 
ruined walls. The ravine, where once crystal 
waters murmured low sweet music on the ear 
of royalty, is now filled up with rubbish and 
filth, the accumulation of ages. On returning 

to my hotel, I wrote a letter to my precious 

16'^ 



192 LEAFLETS. 

mother, and such is the length of the days in 
Scotland, this season of the year, that I could 
see distinctly to finish it at half-past ten 
o'clock P. M. 

The next morning we rode a few miles in 
the cars, and on leaving them were hurriedly 
huddled into an old Highland stage coach, 
with a driver clad in plaids, who cracked his 
whip and whirled us off at a rapid rate, as if 
some point was to he reached at the peril of 
every passing moment. In a short time, how- 
ever, we found ourselves jogging at a slow rate 
over the Highlands, until we reached the Tro- 
sachs, which are rocky, romantic defiles, where 
nature displays many irregular aspects in 

"Craigs, knolls, and mounds confusedly hurled 
The fragments of an earlier world." 

As we emerged from this wilderness of rocks 
and precipices, we came in sight of Loch Ka- 
^ trine, where we soon exchanged the crowded 
stage-coach for a clean little steamer waiting 
for us. It was a bright and lovely hour as 
we glided past Ellen's Isle, like an emerald set- 
ting in the lake; musing on the fair maiden, 
whom Scott relates as having her first inter- 
view with the Knight of Snowdoun on this 



LOCH LOMOND. 19B 

Isle that bears her name. We seemed too soon 
to pass over this charming lake, combin- 
ing so much beauty with a kind of Alpine 
dignity. Stepping from the boat, we climbed 
up a ladder into a large open wagon, in 
which we were conveyed through the wild 
valley leading to Loch Lomond, forming the 
home of the MacGregors, and the haunts of 
Rob Koy; the roads were rough and rocky, 
the soil covered with heather and broom, the 
trees stunted and dwarfish. But nothing can 
surpass the beauty of Loch Lomond, the pride 
of all the Scottish lakes, and according to an. 
old highland legend it is 

" Famous for three things ; 
Waves without winds, 
Fish without fins, 
And an Island that swims." 

It is an irregular, narrow sheet of water^ 
thirty miles long, and in no place more than 
five wide. The scenery is exceedingly 
captivating, and at many points reminding 
me of views on the Hudson river, near West 
Point. There is no fear of being alone on 
these celebrated waters. Our little steamer 
was crowded with tourists, some, like our- 



194 LEAFLETS. 

selves, with guide-book in hand, others with 
guns and dogs, seeking recreation in these 
wild districts, never resorted to for business 
purposes. 

No vision of loveliness 1 have ever gazed 
upon, excels the mountains of Loch Lomond. 
Among them all, Ben Lomond, the giant, 
towers up over thirty-two hundred feet, while 
his brothers gradually diminish until they be- 
come gentle elevations. At one point, they 
nestle and huddle together, looking over into 
the lake as if it were a mirror upon which 
they are gazing; then, side by side, stretching 
out in the distance, higher peaks appear as if 
watching their turn to display beauty in out- 
line and delicate tints of blue, until blending 
in the azure of the sky? 

As we glided along, far up among the crags, 
we were pointed out Bruce's Cave, so called 
because that chieftain secreted himself there 
one night when pursued by his enemies. 
Having intruded into the sleeping apartment 
of a mountain goat, he fell asleep, and the 
animal coming in trod upon his garments ; 
supposing it to be his enemies, he sprang to 
his feet, but seeing the innocent creature, he 



GLASGOW, 195 

was gratefully surprised, and in token of bis 
good fortune, when he became king, passed a 
law, and had it recorded in the statute books^ 
that from that time all goats should be free 
throughout Scotland, and not punishable for 
any offence they might commit. Very le^ 
luctantly leaving these most charming lakes, 
we reached Glasgow^ by train toward evenings 
the commercial metropolis of Scotland,, 
and called the cradle of steam naviga* 
ti(m, as some of the finest steamers in the 
world have been fitted out here. It is alsa 
noted for its extensive manufactories. The 
city has many points of interest, being built 
on both sides of the Clyde, which is spanned 
by superb bridges, and many of the streets 
are exceedingly beautiful. The venerable 
Cathedral, some hundreds of years old, did 
not fail to receive our attention. A bridge 
known as the " Bridge of Sighs," affords acces 
to a very conspicuous cemetery ; the ancient 
monuments, standing out against the sky^ 
forms a back-ground to the Cathedral. This 
place is also called the Necropolis, and believ- 
ed by many to have been the dark retreats of 
the Druids in the olden time. On this bold 



196 LEAFLETS. 

eminence, which shoots up so suddenly, stands 
the monument of John Knox, giving an air 
of grandeur to the whole, as the great Re- 
former looks down in marble form upon one 
of the most striking and varied scenes that 
can be imagined. 

At two in the afternoon we took the steam- 
er Thistle, and swept along down the waters 
of the Clyde, enjoying its fine scenery, com- 
posed of hills and dales, castles and towers. 
During the night, we crossed the channel, 
and early next morning, before sun-rise, the 
rocky shore of the Emerald Isle was in view, 
and on which we soon landed at the little 
town of Portrush, in the north of Ireland. 



CHAPTPJR XVI. 

IRELAND — GIANT'S C A USE WAY — BELFAST— D UBLIN. 

June ^Ath. 
At an early hour, we heard the sweet 
chimes proclaiming the hallowed day, and at 
ten o'clock attended service in the Establish- 
ed Church, where the audience evinced re- 
fined taste in their dress and manners, harmo- 
nizing with their religious worship. In the 
afternoon, we listened to a sermon in the 
Wesleyan Chapel, where Adam Clarke form- 
erly preached and commenced his minis- 
terial labors, and was born only a few 
miles distant. The ground seemed sacred, 
having once been pressed by such an intellect- 
ual christian giant. On an eminence, about a 
rod from the Chapel, there has recently been 
erected a splendid monument, worthy of his 
exalted memory. This lovely Sabbath, with 
its jewel hours, will never be forgotten. 



198 LEAFLETS. 

We arose this morning, and found the rain 
pouring down in torrents, but succeeded, 
however, in securing a comfortable carriage, 
a^nd started for the great Irish wonder, if not 
the wonder of the world — the Giant's Cause- 
way, about four miles distant. Our road lay 
:along the coast, and, on a pleasant morning, 
it might have been charming, as it gave us an 
extensive view of the surging waters ; but, in 
a driving rain, it was bleak, cold, and dreary. 
After riding a few miles, we came to Dun- 
luce Castle, a venerable ruin, on a huge, 
insulated rock, overhanging the sea, once the 
residence of Earl Antrim, now the roofless 
and desolate abode of howling winds, and the 
haunts of hundreds of screaming sea-gulls. 
The rain still continuing, we arrived at the 
spacious hotel near the Causeway ; but, as we 
were resolved not to be foiled in our purpose, 
we descended from the carriage, and not be- 
ing able to secure a guide at that early hour, 
in the rain we started alone, braving the 
storm, to find the Giant. We soon found the 
mud a formidable foe, impeding our safe ad- 
vance, as we came very near precipitating 
ourselves headlong down a steep hill in the 



giant's causeway. 199 

rear of the hotel, rendered slippery by the 
rain. 

At the base of the hill, we took a winding 
course below a ledge of rocks or cliffs, rising 
nearly four hundred feet above us. Just as 
we were entering upon the columnar forma- 
tion of basaltic rock, extending far down into 
the sea, a sturdy Irish guide came rushing at 
full speed after us, impelled hjfee motives, no 
doubt, and hallooing, "Och! where are yees7 
where are yees V^ When our presence gave him 
our whereabouts, he continued, ''An' wudyees 
be comin' a mornin' the like o' this, before yees 
wur out o' ye're beds?" and commenced at 
once to blarneyize this, as he called, "very 
wanderful plaze." The general appearance 
is not exactly as I had anticipated ; the 
columns are not as high, but their strange 
and peculiar forms absorbed my attention as 
objects of the greatest interest. The pillars, 
or columns, are irregular in their size and 
form; the polygon, varying in number from 
three to nine, with masses of triangular and 
octagonal columns, crowded together; the 
hexagonal usually prevailing. These angles 

all exactly correspond with the column that 

17 



200 X.EAFLETS. 

adjoins its fellow so closely that the seams, 
or interstices, will not admit water, except in 
the case of the Giant's Well, where it bubbles 
up a little. What a record the unerring 
hand of nature has written, in beautiful hie- 
roglyphics, on these tables of stone ! What an 
extraordinary specimen of masonry by the 
great Master-Builder of heaven and earth ! 

The enchantment of olden times still lin- 
gers here, as attested by our fate-loving guide, 
who insisted on our drinking three times from 
the Giant's Well, which we did not hesitate to 
do, as the water was as clear as crystal, 
showing the bottom, formed of three hexagons, 
and the sides as perfectly arranged. We 
were obliged to forego the good luck of sitting 
in the '' Ladies' Chair," in consequence of the 
rain. In another direction are several shat- 
tered columns, which, at a little distance, re- 
semble chimneys. Near these is the vast 
semi-circular space, called the " Giant's Thea- 
tre." But the most beautiful formation is a 
cluster of columns arranged m the cliff at the 
side of the mountain, strikingly representing 
an immense organ, with a rock forming the 
Giant's Seat. Gould he move these keys, 



BELFAST. 201 

what music would vibrate through all nature ! 
As the rain, the wind, and the waves, were 
sweeping in turj amid these ruins of nature, 
and the billows of old ocean were dancing in 
triumph over these broken columns, the whole 
scene was as bold and impressive in its char- 
acter as it was strange and awful We re- 
turned to Poi'tru.sh, and, taking the train, 
reached Belfast that evening, a flourish- 
ing manufacturing town of one hundred 
thousand inhabitants, and having a charming 
little bay. While here, we enjoyed a drive 
in a most curious vehicle, called a "jaunting- 
car," and we seemed to be' sailing along, with 
a modern Jehu for a driver, who cracked his 
whip as he whizzed around the corners of the 
streets. The seats are the reverse of ours — 
the persons sitting with their backs to each 
other, their feet resting on a little board 
extending over the wheels. As we whirled 
through the streets, I had as much as I could 
do to retain my seat and prevent my dress 
from floating in the breeze, as there was 
nothing in front to protect us. It is a jolly 
way of riding, the English say; and, certainly, 
to any one, a most amusing sight to see a 



202 LEAFLETS. 

"jaunting-car," drawn by one horse, and de- 
signed only for two persons, besides the driver, 
loaded down with a dozen merry Irish boys 
and girls. This is one way they enjoy life in 
"ould Ireland." 

The next morning, we left for Dublin, and 
arrived at the city of fair women about ten 
in the forenoon. Our route extended through 
a highly cultivated country, impressing me 
with the deep, dark green which everywhere 
tinges the drapery of nature, and, no doubt, 
gained for Ireland the name of the Emerald 
Isle. As we were entering the city, a fine 
prospective opened before us, the hills form- 
ing an amphitheatre, clad in rich verdure, and 
adorned with grand old country residences. 
Dublin is the capital of Ireland, and a mag- 
nificent and extensive city. Many of the 
streets and public buildings are strikingly 
beautiful, and at every turn there is an air of 
wealth and good taste, rendering it exceed- 
ingly attractive. The windows in our room 
at the hotel look out on Nelson's Monument, 
a Doric shaft, or fluted column, over one hun- 
dred and twenty feet high, surmounted by a 
colossal statue of the great naval hero. The 



DUBLIN. 



203 



Irish Wesleyan Conference was, at this time, 
holding its annual session, in which Mr. 

N became deeply interested; but, as 

women are not allowed to meet in their sit- 
tings, I took the opportunity to go into the 
large and well-filled shops and stores in Stark- 
ville street- — the Broadway of Dublin — where 
I saw many aristocratic Irish ladies shopping. 
At half-past eight o'clock that evening, a cler- 
gyman whom Mr. N had met at the Con- 
ference, called for us to accompany him to a 
union prayer-meeting, held in a large public 
hall. On arriving there, to our surprise we 
found it crowded with four or five thousand 
people, and it was with difficulty that we suc- 
ceeded in entering through a side door. It 
was a glorious demonstration of the revival 
now spreading throughout Great Britain. 
Many, during the evening, related their ex- 
perience with zeal and enthusiasm. It is 
wonderful that these meetings are thus at- 
tended every evening. 

The first thing we did the next morning 
w.is to climb to the top of Nelson's monu- 
ment, standing in the centi'e of Stark ville 

Street, where we gained a fine view of the 

17-^ 



204 



LEAFLETS . 



top(3graphy of the city and its surroundings. 
The most beautiful feature in the whole view 
is the elegant arched bridges that span the 
Liffey, which river divides the city in nearly 
equal parts. After descending, we took a 
jaunting car, and rode through the Phoenix 
Park, containing seven miles' drive within 
its gates, and enriched by a great variety of 
monuments, trees, shrubs, and flowers. 

"The yew tree lends its shadows dark, 
And many an old oak worn and bare, 
With all their shivered boughs are there." 

This city has many objects of interest, de- 
taining us several days. The Cathedral of 
St. Patrick is a fine old building, containing 
many quaint and curious monuments. The 
patron saint of Ireland erected a Chapel on 
this site in the middle of the fifth century. 
The venerable Trinity College ; the old Houses 
of Parliament; the Castle of Dublin; the ele- 
gant Corinthian fagades of the Royal Ex- 
change, or City Plall; the Custom House, pro- 
nounced by many to be the finest in the Brit- 
ish dominions, adorned with allegorical figures 
of Wealth, Navigation, Commerce and Indus- 
try, and sculptured impersonations of Europe, 



GLASNEVEN CEMETERY. 205 

Asia, Africa, and America, the whole crowned 
by a lofty dome one hundred and twenty feet 
high, which is surmomited by a proud statue 
of Hope ; — all these buildings do honor to an 
intelligent and patriotic nation. 

In the rural Cemetery of Glasneven, we 
stood beside the grave of O'Connell, who^ 
during his life-time, by overpowering elo- 
quence, swayed the minds and controlled the 
actions, if not the destinies, of his country- 
men. In the same grounds, a grand monu- 
ment is nearly complete, and in the crypt, at 
its base, his remains are to be placed. Long^ 
will Ireland's noble sons retain green the 
memory of their eminent statesman. In St, 
Ann's Church, near the house where she died, 
in a modest vault, repose the remains of the 
lovely and gifted Mrs. Hemans. On a tablet 
is inscribed her name and age, and when she 
died, accompanied by these thrilling lines 
from a dirge of her own : 

" Calm on the bosom of thy God, 

Fair spirit ! rest thee now ! 
Even while with us thy footsteps trod, 

His seiil was on thy brow. 
Dust to the narrow home beneath ! 

Soul to its place on high ; 
They, that have seen thy look in death, 

No more may fear to die." 



206 LEAFLETS. 

She was born in Duke Street, Liverpool, 
September 25th, 1794. When very young, 
she gave indications of poetical genius. Her 
first printed poems entitled ''Early Blossoms," 
were composed by her at the age of fburte en. 
She was married to Captain Hemans, when 
all of youthful beauty adorned her person, 
with a profusion of natural ringlets shading 
the bloom of her cheeks, while her brilliant 
eyes gave expression to a countenance impos- 
sible for a painter to describe. Her crown- 
ing grace, was a love for the good and eleva- 
ted as evinced in the sweet purity of her nu- 
merous productions. She sweetly fell asleep 
in death March 26th, 1835. 

We have seen Ireland only in its most de- 
lightful aspect, and passed no dreary moors, 
and but few fields of peat. In the place of 
the mud-houses, I have seen palaces and com- 
fortable homes. Instead of coarse ugly fea- 
tured women, I have been charmed with the 
beautiful, robust, rosy women of Dublin, and 
the north of Ireland, and in the absence of 
uncultivated "Paddy,'' with pipe, brogans and 
shillalah, have appeared before us the finest 
specimens of intelligent and noble Irish gentle- 



IRELAND. 207 

men. We will have to leave the south of Ire- 
land, with the charming Lakes of Killarney, 
for another visit ; why delay longer to inform 
you that we must quit ould Ireland without 
kissing the renowned "Blarney Stone," and 
forever be deprived of the eloquence its kiss 
imparts. 

We have just received intelligence of the 
death of Prince Jerome Bonaparte, the last 
brother of Napoleon the First, and have de- 
cided to hasten to Paris to see his body lying 
in state at the Palace Royal, and to attend 
his funeral — a rare privilege. 

Thus we bid adieu to merrie England, bon- 
nie Scotland, and swate ould Ireland, to enjoy 
sunnie vine-clad France. 



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